WO O DS TOCK/M A I TL A N D
“ Te l lin g it a s it i s” E-mail: post@peoplespost.co.za
Tuesday 12 April 2011
Tel: 021 713 9440 Fax: 021 713 9481
Old Biscuit Mill traffic ‘horror’ TAURIQ HASSEN
W
ITH the Old Biscuit Mill growing in popularity and attracting larger crowds at the weekend, frustration is also mounting among locals and authorities over increasing traffic volumes. Local ward councillor, Bernadette le Roux has called on the City of Cape Town’s traffic authorities to find an answer to problems relating to a lack of parking space and general poor traffic flow during its hours of operation. The Old Biscuit Mill, situated in Albert Road, was launched in 2006 and remains a popular attraction offering activities such as night markets, office facilities, farm stalls, cafés, and hosts festivals and productions, according to the website. But the bustle also causes backedup traffic jams, double parking and a poor traffic flow up to the Salt River Circle, say frustrated residents. Some maintain that the area becomes “horrendous” thanks to increased traffic, particularly on a Saturday morning. Patrick Williams, a Woodstock resident says traffic flow at weekends is “hectic”. “Since the opening of that Biscuit Mill, the traffic problems seem to be getting worse every weekend, and it’s people from outside the area coming here and causing all sorts of traffic problems,” says Williams. He says the Salt River Circle has become “horrendous” at the weekend, with motorists having to wait for long periods of time just to enter the circle. “There is so much traffic using the circle that people don’t have a chance to move into it and drive off,
because there is so much activity outside that Biscuit Mill,” says Williams. Sharief Koetzen, another resident, says the large number of cars using Albert Road forces traffic into residential areas. “I already attempted to report the matter to traffic and they made it clear that motorists should not be using the (residential roads) as a shortcut and should remain on the main roads,” says Koetzen. He says he lodged a complaint last year, after his car was damaged in Greatmore Street by a driver who drove off without stopping at a stop street. Many of the people using the area on weekends “do not live in the area. It’s becoming quite sickening now, because these people park anywhere they want to. They drive any way they want to and they are arrogant when you approach them,” says Koetzen. Le Roux was aware of the traffic concerns and called for serious action. “Traffic services needs to come up with a solution to this problem,” she says. “We cannot hide the fact that the Biscuit Mill is fast becoming a popular destination on the weekend, but the traffic problem needs to be attended to,” she tells People’s Post. Le Roux could not confirm whether a traffic impact assessment had been done when the Biscuit Mill was introduced, but added: “We cannot go and shut down the place because of traffic concerns, but the matter will have to be looked into”. DA PR Councillor, Paddy Chapple, was also aware of the problems surrounding the facility and suggested two areas that could be looked at as potential alternative parking areas for patrons. One area
The South African Surf Life Saving Championship was held in perfect weather conditions at the Strand beach on Saturday. The Fish Hoek Surf Life Saving Club walked off with the championship title, while Durban Surf and Kings Beach (PE) placed second and third respectively. Photo: Denzil Maregele
is the Salt River Market, “which needs a clean-up before it can be considered, ” he says, with a second site underneath the Salt River Station bridge. People’s Post reported on the incorrect usage of Essex Street in Woodstock by motorists on three separate occasions (“Lack of signs blamed for crash”, 27 April 2010; “Death trap worry persists”, 23 November 2010, and most recently, “Problems continue at busy intersection”, 5 April). In all three instances motorists were blatantly ignoring the signs indicating one-way traffic in residential parts of Woodstock. These incidents were attributed to an increase in traffic volumes in the area on a Saturday, during the hours of the Biscuit Mill was operational. Teun Baartman, former chairperson for the Upper Woodstock Resi-
dents’ Association (UWRA) and chairperson of the Woodstock Community Police Forum, says traffic concerns about the Old Biscuit Mill were raised years ago. “It is a nuisance and this is exactly what we feared would happen in the area when the Biscuit Mill was announced,” says Baartman. He said departments such as the Cit’s traffic services and Metro Police should be contacted in this regard, and not the SAPS. “We do acknowledge that the traffic increases tremendously over the weekend in the area, which introduces several traffic concerns, but the SAPS face different problems,” says Baartman. He explains that when cars are parked and the drivers are at the Biscuit Mill, many of cars are broken into, which then calls for police intervention. In this regard, Baartman called
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on the businesses to provide adequate security for their patrons’ vehicles. “They should all stand together and ensure that their visitors are seen to when they visit their facility, so proper security and parking should be looked into,” says Baartman. Le Roux promised to “look into the matter” by requesting assistance from the City’s traffic services. People’s Post attempted to gain comment from Rabie Properties, the company managing the Old Biscuit Mill, but they could not provide comment by the time of going to print.
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