At the intersection of St George and Buick streets, one of the main entrances into Markman, thick clouds of dust are a constant feature amid a constant flow of trucks to and from the industrial area. The tar surface at the intersection is nearly nonexistent as heavy vehicles continuously damage the road. (Photo: Riaan Marais) National road traffic laws are quite clear – drive on the left side of the road.
But these laws have seemingly been suspended along some of the main routes of the Markman industrial area in Nelson Mandela Bay.
“On what side of the road are we driving? On the side where there is still a road!” a delivery driver laughed as he drove along a dilapidated section of Buick Street.
As soon as a vehicle turns from St George Street onto Buick Street, one of the main access routes into the industrial area, thick clouds of dust fill the air and the road surface turns into an unexpected suspension test.
/file/attachments/orphans/MarkmanRoads3_957660.jpg "Sections of road in the Markman industrial area have become almost impassable for some vehicles because high volumes of trucks have caused significant damage to the surface. (Photo: Riaan Marais)")
And if you feel like really testing your driving skills, visit on a rainy day when dirt and potholes turn to slippery sludge and water traps.
This issue was highlighted in November when the political head of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality’s (NMBM) human settlements department, Thembinkosi Mafana, led a delegation of metro officials to follow up on compliance notices issued to manganese operators.
The notices were issued to 12 entities in violation of the Spatial Land Use Management by-law for “noxious use” since they are storing manganese without submitting risk management and prevention plans to the municipality.
It was also found that some of the manganese operators were occupying land illegally and storing containers on municipal property outside their own premises. According to the notices, some were even building permanent structures on the occupied municipal land.
The blame for the deterioration of the roads has also been placed at the feet of the manganese operators as many believe the constant movement of their heavy trucks are to blame for the state of the road surface.
On the other hand, the Markman Business Forum feel they are being wronged by the municipality as their attempts to acquire more land and access to better roads are being stymied by the City and state-owned entities.
Since Mafana’s visit no visible action has been taken and the situation appears to have worsened.
At the far end of Chevrolet Street a section of municipal land has been cleared of vegetation for containers to be stacked and stored.
/file/attachments/orphans/MarkmanRoads1_184556.jpg "More than three months after a municipal delegation visited the Markman industrial area to investigate the illegal occupation of municipal land, visible action is yet to be taken. Nelson Mandela Bay city officials said the process to serve the offenders with legal notices is under way. Meanwhile, stacks of containers are being stored without permission on vacant plots on Chevrolet Street. (Photo: Riaan Marais)")
Driving down the same street has turned into a hazardous exercise as vehicles swerve around potholes and gravel patches where the tar surface used to be, and trucks often end up in the oncoming lane, regardless of any other vehicles on the road.
Similar scenes play out along Studebaker and Buick streets.
Mafana said that since he led the site visit in November the matter of compliance notices has been raised in council and the matter has been handed over to the City’s legal services department.
“These issues of illegal occupation and the roads in Markman are not new. The notices were issued some time ago and our visit in November was to confirm where the issues are and where municipal land was being occupied.
“The notices were issued, but there was no follow-up. Since our oversight visit the matter was brought to council and we have made certain recommendations on the steps that the legal services department now needs to take,” Mafana said.
/file/attachments/2984/WhatsApp-Image-2025-11-23-at-1222_305218_7d76aea7cb74460565d83f4f1ad852b5.jpg "Nelson Mandela Bay human settlements officials, accompanied by political head for the directorate Thembinkosi Mafana, conducted an oversight visit to the Markman industrial area in November 2025. They followed up on compliance notices that were issued to manganese operators accused of occupying municipal land illegally. (Photo: Andisa Bonani)")
He said part of the recommendations was that more than one firm be appointed to handle the legal action. Mafana believed distributing the process among several firms will lighten the load, expedite the process and avoid any conflicts of interest along the way.
“You cannot fix a problem this size with just one law firm handling all of it. We have an entire database of firms that can be called upon to help us take this process further.
“Bottom line, we have taken steps to address the issues in Markman and the process is ongoing,” Mafana added.
Markman Business Forum (MBF) spokesperson Graham Taylor described Mafana’s oversight visit in November as a “Hollywood raid” and said the plight of businesses in the area is being ignored.
While the MBF is aware of the notices related to illegally occupied land, Taylor said it is unclear exactly which portions of land Mafana was referring to.
He said roughly 50% of land in Markman is owned by private companies and “filled to the hilt”, highlighting the need for private owners to gain access to more municipal land, or land within the Coega Special Economic Zone (SEZ).
/file/attachments/orphans/MarkmanRoads6_868923.jpg "At the intersection of St George Street and Buick Street, one of the main entrances into Markman, thick clouds of dust are a constant feature as a constant flow of trucks come and go from the industrial area. The tar surface at the intersection is nearly non-existent as heavy vehicles continuously damage the road. (Photo: Riaan Marais)")
With regards to the poor state of roads, Taylor said several businesses have taken it upon themselves to do maintenance on routes around their premises. Meanwhile, there is an ongoing dispute around access to Neptune Road, the border between Markman and the SEZ, which Taylor said would relieve much of the pressure on the deteriorating roads.
“There seems to be a disagreement between the municipality and Coega Development Corporation (CDC) about who is responsible for maintenance of Neptune Road. We believe it is a public road that could serve as a useful alternative to the routes many of the trucks coming and going from Markman could make use of. However, Coega controls access to the road and keeps it under lock and key.”
However, in a document tabled as part of a working group, which includes the CDC, Transnet, the NMBM and MBF, to determine access to and use of Neptune Road, the CDC said the road runs on property belonging to the CDC, making them the custodians thereof.
The CDC also cited concerns about security and the transport of noxious cargo as further reasons to control access to Neptune Road.
Taylor said that while there are open lines of communication between all the parties involved in the working group, it appears that the business forum was excluded from recent discussions, and in his most recent correspondence with the City threatened possible protest action.
“Notwithstanding the commitments by the NMBM to a follow-up meeting within two weeks of the adjourned meeting of 3 February 2026, no such meeting has taken place [...] now appears that the CDC, NMBM and Transnet are engaging in meetings without the MBF being present,” the MBF’s latest letter to NMBM, dated 6 March, stated.
“Given the continued non-responsiveness of the NMBM in respect of this matter, the MBF will have no option but to escalate the matter,” Taylor said. DM