Speed bumps and potholes that appeared after work on water mains, roads in poor condition to the point of being impassable : the Municipality of Capoterra is counterattacking, and through the local police, is fining Abbanoa for the damage caused to the city streets . For now, the fines issued by the traffic police are two, for a total of 1,200 euros , but the impression – given the conditions of the roads being worked on by Abbanoa – is that their number is destined to rise.

To see the problem first hand, just take a walk around the streets of Capoterra. Walking along the entire length of Via Cagliari , to then arrive in Via Amendola , you lose count of the road sections that have been patched up following an intervention on the water network: in no case has the road surface returned to its initial state.

The mayor, Beniamino Garau , explains the decision to use strong measures against the water service management company: «The situation has become unacceptable, recently, due to one of these restorations that were certainly not carried out in a workmanlike manner, a boy fell from a scooter ; in some places the Abbanoa workers intervened and the hole was not even closed with cement ».

It may seem like a figure of speech, but the first year of management of the Abbanoa water service is really leaking from all sides: the pipes, especially in the summer, have been a sieve, and in some cases it took months before the leaks were closed. "In these months we have seen water gushing from the underground services without anyone doing anything, a mockery for the citizens who risked rationing due to the water crisis - says Garau -, despite the reports from the Municipality and residents, it is impossible to establish when the Abbanoa first response teams go into action: when they do, then, it is clear to everyone how they reduce the roads".

Roberta Maxia, commander of the local police , clarifies the reasons for the fines issued to Abbanoa: «The roadworks have made traffic dangerous , we acted as we would have done for any citizen, we cannot tolerate the appearance of bumps and dips especially on particularly busy roads like via Cagliari».

After the path of the reports, the Municipality is trying to take the path of self-management on the road surface repair works. "Of the 17 million promised investments, very little has been seen so far - says Garau -, on Monday there will be an intervention for the replacement of some pressure valves on via Amendola that will leave the town without water for a few hours, but we are waiting for the start of more important works. In the future, to avoid destroying our road network, we would like to take care of fixing the potholes ourselves, then diverting our intervention from the cost of the water service ".

© Riproduzione riservata