“Looking forward to safer Easter on our roads

30 March 2010

The Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) together with traffic departments from the provinces and the municipalities as well as the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the Cross Border Road Traffic Agency (CBRTA) have pulled out all the stops to ensure that motorists around the country travel safely during the coming Easter weekend.

A number of road safety initiatives involving enforcement and communications will be rolled out as per the national rolling enforcement plan and heightened during the peak traffic flow periods that include the closing and opening of the school holidays as well as the Easter long weekend.

Various hazardous locations (roads where high numbers of road users lose their lives) around the country have been identified and they will be closely monitored by the various traffic enforcement agencies.

These include, amongst others, the following routes:

* Gauteng: the Moloto Road (K573), the R80 Mabopane Highway, the R59 Vereeniging Road, the N12 to and from Potchefstroom
* Mpumalanga: the N4 from Bronkhorstspruit to Nelspruit and most of the secondary roads where mining takes place
* Eastern Cape: the N2 from Umtata to Kokstad and the secondary routes
* Limpopo: the N1 particularly the stretch from Polokwane to Makhado, the R101 from Bela-Bela to Polokwane
* Western Cape: the N2 from Cape Town to the airport and the N1 stretch from Laingsburg to Beaufort West
* North West province: the N4 from Rustenburg to Mafikeng, the R503 from Lichtenberg to Mafikeng
* Free State: the N8 from Bloemfontein to Ladybrand and the N6 from Bloemfontein to Aliwal North
* Northern Cape: the entire N14 including the rural secondary roads
* KwaZulu-Natal: the N3 at the van Reenen's Pass as well many of the secondary roads on the north and south coasts.

Special focus will be given to driver and vehicle fitness such as speeds too high for the conditions, overloading and drunken driving. No tolerance will be shown for dangerous driving such as overtaking on barrier lines and red light infringements. Light delivery vehicles found overloaded with passengers and or goods will be removed from the roads. This includes trailers that are overloaded and un-roadworthy.

"Motorists must be under no illusion that because the evidential breath testing equipment may have been suspended by the National Prosecuting Authority in certain areas, drunk driving operations will be scaled down. We will draw blood, use video footage and also use the officer's testimony to fight the cases in court.

"Bus companies that will be faring people, are also warned that we will not be deterred from impounding any buses that are found to be un-roadworthy and arrest any drivers that will be driving without professional driving permits (PRDPs)," said Mr Collins Letsoalo, Acting Chief Executive Officer of the RTMC.

Motorists are urged to drive with care, especially where potholes, stray animals and pedestrians pose a hazard. Driving at night and in wet weather worsens the situation and drivers are advised to obey all road traffic rules and regulations, especially, that of observing a prudent following distance and driving within a safe speed limit.

"A surprise awaits those culprits that attempt to defeat the ends of justice by removing the registration plates in order to escape from fixed cameras. Traffic officials may remove the license disc and discontinue the vehicle," added Mr Letsoalo.

Motorists are urged to report bad driving to 0861 400 800.

Media contact:
Ashref Ismail
Cell: 071 680 3448 or 082 826 5883

Issues by: Road Traffic Management Corporation
30 March 2010