Easter road fatalities down by 41%, but hard work still needs to be done
This week the Minister of Transport, Blade Nzimande, revealed that South Africa’s Easter road fatalities are down by 41% compared to last year’s numbers. Although it may be too early to tell as reporting for this Easter weekend is still underway, Nzimande stated that an increase in the presence of law enforcement on the roads played a part in the reduction.
It was reported that 800 drivers were arrested across the country for various offenses, while 104 fatalities have so far been recorded (compared to last year’s 510).
“What is also significant this time round is that there have been far fewer crashes involving bigger vehicles such as minibuses or trucks that normally lead to a large number of deaths,” said Nzimande.
IOL reports that concern was raised over the number of unroadworthy vehicles reported on the roads over the Easter weekend – a major contributing factor towards road accidents and breakdowns. 10% of the 600 cars that were pulled over between 9am and 1pm on Monday 22 April were considered to be unroadworthy.
“That is very high, it still shows that a significant number of drivers are really not following the road safety rules and procedures. But on the other hand, it shows that our law enforcement officers are able to pick them up,” Nzimande said.
Despite the decrease in road deaths across the country this past weekend, hard work still needs to be done in order to make our roads safe for all.
How was your Easter weekend road journey? Share your stories with us at [email protected]