Traffic officers and taxi operators will join forces this Easter to patrol South Africa’s highways and boost road safety.
Traffic officers and taxi operators will join forces this Easter to patrol South Africa’s highways and boost road safety.
“Neither Arrive Alive nor the government know our drivers like we do, and so we will patrol the roads with traffic officers,” SA national taxi council (Santaco) president Tom Moufe said.
Speaking in Pretoria at the launch of Arrive Alive’s Easter road safety campaign, he said taxi drivers would respond better to those who had an understanding of the way they operated.
Taxi drivers across the country were being urged to practise safe driving over Easter with 100 000 leaflets and 1 000 posters to be distributed at taxi terminals.
While on patrol, drivers would report bad driving practices and help with breakdowns, Moufe said.
“This year we want our passengers and our drivers to arrive safely. We have told all drivers to help others who are stuck on the side of the road. This way we can transport our passengers safely and quickly,” he said.
“A good driver is a safe driver, is the message we will be spreading,” Moufe added.
Deputy director general of transport Sipho Khumalo said government realised that without strategic partnerships, the number of road deaths could never be reduced.
Arrive Alive will continue its “Value of Human Life” campaign, used in December last year, paying special attention to real people affected by the carnage on our roads. This Easter the focus will be on seatbelts and the dangers of not wearing them while driving.