The Women of Road Information Services

by Tracey Spires

The team of ladies from Road Information Services

When entering the Road Information Services (RIS) office, one thing you will notice is that it comprises mostly of women. In a previously male-dominated profession, this might be quite surprising to some, that there are so many women.

Road Information Services is a very busy and diverse office. One of our main functions is to provide support to the Regions. We also manage the corporate Geographic Information System (GIS) and the Road Network Management System (RNMS). We are the record-keepers of all road information, which include cabinets and cabinets of plans. We also assist the public with various road related queries, house records of road history and proclamation information and create maps in all shapes and sizes for the public and staff.

	Our Control Technician is Janet Blunt. She is the coordinator of all the work that goes on within our hectic office. Janet can usually be found holed up in her office staring intently at her computer, banging away at the keyboard. Her days are also kept busy attending various meetings and seminars. She also has the daunting job of supervising a variety of different personalities, which she does with ease. Janet enjoys relaxing at home…. when she gets the chance, although she has two young children who keep her on her toes.
	Michéle Fourie is a Chief Technician, is in charge of the GIS section, which comprises of Pamela Small, Nadine Philips and Tracey Spires. Her job includes supervising the GIS staff and coordinating staff workloads. Michéle is currently involved in the declaration of roads and GIS work. She also liaises with the Regions, consultants and other Provincial departments. She is an avid runner and kickboxer, so don't make her angry!!!
	Pamela Small is a Chief Auxiliary Services Officer (ASO) who is in charge of keeping records of the declaration process. When she’s not assisting staff at the front desk, Pamela can often be seen darting around the office, finding files and researching various roads. She also assists one of our clerks, Edmund and is often heard asking him if he’s finished this and that. Her hobbies include walking her dog and hiking.
	Tracey Spires is a Principal ASO who spends most of her days creating various maps for the Department. She is in charge of creating all the maps that can be seen in most offices and keeping the office smiling with her various quips and jokes. Her hobbies include sewing and baking and her favourite expression is "Come here, let me slap you", however this is only ever threatened.
	Nadine Philips is a Chief ASO and is assisting with the preparation of road descriptions. She also keeps the hard copy topographical maps up to date and can often be seen smacking a very obstinate draughting pen on her desk in order to get it working. Nadine is also kept very busy at home with her teenage daughter, Christy.
	Lindiwe Macebo is a Technician, who is in charge of all the general road queries. She often cannot be seen at her desk because of all the plans surrounding her. She has also been involved in the declaration process where she translated a great amount of the English descriptions into Zulu. She also assists by updating the Application Roads database. She is presently studying for her B-Tech Degree. Good luck Linds, we know you can do it!!
	Margie Vosloo is a Chief Technician, who is our Oracle record keeper. She is in charge of the Oracle database that contains thousands and thousands of records. She is kept very busy with various queries. She is currently updating the Road Network Management System (RNMS) by inputting all the proclamation information into the system. Margie also supervises the Desktop Publishing Section. She is kept very busy at home, chasing two Great Danes around her extensive yard.
	Although not technically part of RIS anymore, Karen Bole is still very much part of our team. She has been in the office the longest, and is tasked with producing desktop publishing items for the Department. She uses her skills in Coreldraw to create various impressive posters and banners, which have been used on several public occasions like the Royal Show. She also has the daunting task of creating business cards and compliment slips for all components of the Department. Karen enjoys baking and making rum balls, much to the delight of the office.

There is never a dull moment in our office, as there is always something going on. Although some would say that a bunch of women together spells trouble, we work very well together under stressful situations and usually complete these tasks with a smile.

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