Cuts on bridge pillars in South Africa’s Pretoria part of the original design, mayor debunks video circulating on social media

“Be careful when you drive along President Styein Bridge in Pretoria North. They have cut or are busy cutting the pillars that hold the bridge,” reads the caption of a video circulating on the social media platform X.

The video shows several pillars supporting a bridge. They all appear to be slightly cut at the bottom, raising fears that the bridge might collapse.

The same video and claim have also been doing the rounds on Facebook since November 2024.

There is a President Steyn Street in northern Pretoria, the administrative capital of South Africa. The video most likely shows where the M1 highway passes under President Steyn. We checked the street view of the area on Google Maps and saw that the pillars of the bridge above the M1 appear to have the same cuts as in the circulating video. 

Some users blamed “illegal foreigners” for the cuts: “Illegal foreigners are destroying/sabotaging South African Bridges ,this is President Styein Bridge North Pretoria … SAn Motorists and Pedestrians please be careful and look out for anything sinister happening on SA roads maintained with SAns taxes.”

South Africa has a long history of xenophobia, or hatred of foreigners, dating back to the 1990s.

Many xenophobic attacks have involved brutal violence. In some cases, groups of South Africans have forcefully removed immigrants from areas, blaming them for social problems such as unemployment and crime. (Note: For more on the topic, read Africa Check’s analysis on mapping, understanding and preventing xenophobic violence in South Africa.)

But is there any truth to the claim that a bridge in Pretoria has been deliberately sabotaged? We checked.

Mayor debunks video

Pretoria is the administrative capital of South Africa. It falls under the City of Tshwane municipality in the Gauteng province. 

City of Tshwane officials visited the site shortly after the video started circulating on social media. They inspected the bridge and declared it safe.

Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya said the cuts on the pillars were part of the original design: “We visited the President Steyn Street bridge, in Pretoria North. We were accompanied by city engineers to assess the bridge following fears raised by residents … The cuts seen on the President Steyn Street bridge are part of the original design – German inspired.”

Spreading claims of deliberate sabotage could cause panic among those living in the area or using that route regularly, and blaming the damage on immigrants could fuel xenophobia.