Dangerous drivers targeted
By Tabisa Mntengwana
17 February 2010
MORE than 400 motorists were arrested over the weekend in a campaign run by Buffalo City and the provincial department of transport, safety and liaison.
An ongoing initiative, the traffic blitz kicked off this weekend. It is aimed at reducing road accidents, preparing for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ and targeting drunk drivers.
Explaining the campaign, the City’s general manager for public safety, Steve Terwin, said: “The traffic enforcement programme is part of an ongoing campaign aimed at drunken driving and unworthy vehicles.”
It comes on the heels of the State of the Province address by Eastern Cape Premier Noxolo Kiviet on 19 February, in which she said the province would show zero tolerance to drinking and driving to promote road safety using the 12 point driving licence demerit system as a key tool when it came into effect on 1 April.
The new point system forms part of the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences, or Aarto, and is expected to play a vital role in preventing road accidents. “Our province has in recent times experienced incidents of high road accident fatalities and we appeal to our people to heed to the call of [this campaign],” Kiviet said.
The campaign is also part of the province’s Best Practice Model initiative, which was introduced in 2008 with members including municipal and provincial traffic departments, the South African Police Service and the department of health.
Speaking about the weekend programme, Terwin said: “The difference between the past weekend and other programmes is that the past weekend’s programme was a joint operation between the South African Police Service, the provincial department of transport and traffic services, and Buffalo City.”
Over the weekend, at least 220 unroadworthy vehicles were suspended, 445 drivers were arrested for drunken driving and there were more than 900 other offences.
“The fines issued [excluding drunken driving] totalled R281 000 and the value of warrants of arrest executed was R42 500,” Terwin added.
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