Thousands of South African motorists may lose their driver’s licences by the end of 2008 if they fail to adhere to the rules of the road, the KwaZulu-Natal transport department said on Thursday.
Bheki Cele, provincial minister of transport, community safety and liaison, said the demerit system will be introduced this year in South Africa, which will help solve traffic-violation problems.
”There are 12 points on a demerit card … and every time you break a rule on the road you lose points. If you lose 12 points by the end of each year, you will lose your driver’s licence,” said Cele.
For example, he said, talking on a cellphone while driving will cost a motorist three points. ”So if you get caught doing this four times in the year, you would have effectively struck out your 12 points.”
He said for drinking and driving, up to six points could be taken off a licence, depending on the amount of alcohol found in a driver’s blood. ”This means, you just have to get caught twice to lose your licence,” stressed Cele.
Transport Minister Jeff Radebe last year said the demerit pilot project would be implemented in Tshwane first before it was rolled out nationally in April 2008.
Cele could not say when the demerit system would start in KwaZulu-Natal.
Road statistics
The provincial minister also released statistics on festive-season road accidents. In little more than a month, more than 33 000 motorists had been charged for traffic violations in KwaZulu-Natal, and these figures excluded speed-camera recordings.
He said there was a total of 33 138 traffic charges between December 1 and January 8. ”These charges included 6 977 speed charges, another 962 people were arrested for drunken driving, 2 618 people were nabbed for driving without a licence, 1 827 were fined for not wearing seat belts, 118 were fined for inconsiderate driving and 71 were arrested for speeding.”
Another 941 vehicles were found to be unroadworthy and pulled off the roads.
”And most of the traffic violators were not from KZN … they were from Gauteng,” Cele said.
”Many senior leaders from Gauteng told me they would never drive in KZN again because of these speed traps … they said they would rather fly the next time,” he added.
Cele said fatalities on the province’s roads had decreased considerably since the previous financial year — ”we have moved from zero tolerance to 100% compliance”, he said.
A total of 246 people had died between December 1 and January 8, compared with 323 fatalities during the same period last year. Of the 246 deceased, 46 were drivers, 76 were passengers and 124 were pedestrians. From the 323 road fatalities last year, 175 were pedestrians.
Cele said pedestrian fatalities were the most challenging task for the department but stressed that it would be looking at the issue more closely this year.
Road Traffic Inspectorate manager John Schnell said it expects more than a million new cars on the roads this year, compared with 300 000 new cars on the road last year. ”This will obviously cause heavy congestion on the roads … but we are working to continue reducing road fatalities,” he said.
He said fatal crashes in the province had been reduced by 11,52% while fatalities on the roads had decreased by 11,8%. Deaths of pedestrians were still high, though.
Speeding
Cele said speed was also worrying. Between December 4 and 18, at least 7 600 motorists had been caught on camera for speeding in the province, ”and they will be receiving their fines in the post soon”.
The highest speed recorded during the festive season was 217km/h on the N3, near Gillitts. The driver was arrested and released on a warning, said Cele.
The highest speed recorded for a minibus taxi in the province during the same period was also on the N3, near Estcourt. A taxi was recorded travelling at 179km/h. Cele said the driver received a R5 000 fine in court.
The highest speed recorded for a heavy motor vehicle in the province during the same time was on the N2 freeway in Scottsburgh. The driver was caught doing 119km/h and was later released on R2 000 bail.
A total of 962 people were charged for drunken driving between December 1 and January 8. — Sapa