KwaZulu-Natal transport authorities said they are increasing enforcement on their roads after failing to get drivers to “self-regulate”.
KwaZulu-Natal transport authorities said they are increasing enforcement on their roads after failing to get drivers to “self-regulate”.
KZN transport MEC S’bu Ndebele told at a meeting with about 2 000 church leaders in Durban on Tuesday that he wanted churches and community leaders to work together with government in a bid to curb the road carnage in the province.
Ndebele said his department had hoped that there would be a voluntary compliance among drivers since it had engaged in various road safety programmes.
“We have not succeeded in getting drivers and other road users to self regulate, as a result we have no choice but to increase enforcement,” Ndebele said.
Department spokesman Thabang Chiloane told CARtoday.com that they plan to run enforcement campaigns targeting specific issues. “But it will not be something introduced at Christmas or Easter, it will run all year long. We will be focusing on drunk driving even more and checking that motorists are wearing seatbelts.
“We will also be looking at hazardous locations for pedestrians and focusing on bringing the death toll down. We have already had success in Pietermaritzburg. We built a pedestrian bridge over the R70 in Edendale, where we have had a number of deaths as residents cross the road to get to the hospital. We put up a 2 m wall alongside the bridge to stop pedestrians crossing the road and in the two months since it was built we have had not a single fatality.
“We are now looking at other areas where we can add bridges and other ways to keep pedestrians safe; for example, if they are crossing the road to get fresh water then we need to ensure there is a water source on their side of the road,” he said.