New road rules to be rolled out on July 1

The new Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) Act is expected to be formally introduced in 2021, along with the system drivers have been dreading for a long time: The demerit system.

The latest Aarto regulations were gazetted in October 2020 by Minister of Transport Fikile Mbulula. The 540-page directive is due for its national rollout on July 1, 2020.

The demerit system will be introduced in three phases to ensure that road users are gradually introduced to the implications of the demerit point system. According to the system, demerit points will be allocated to the operators and owners of vehicles, who will be liable to pay a penalty and also incur points for various traffic infringements.

If enough points are incurred, the person who has gained them may have their license suspended or vehicle impounded.

The points will work as follows:

• The offender/infringer receives a penalty, and they also receive the demerit points allocated to the specific offence

• If the demerit points exceed the maximum points, a person will be disqualified from driving or using the vehicle for a period of time

• The points for the offences and infringements range between six and one

• The maximum for a person or operator card or a licence disc for a juristic person who is not an operator is 15 points

• The maximum for a learner driver is six points

• The time value of each point is three months for disqualification or reduction purposes

• If demerit points are allocated to a person or vehicle record and no further demerit points are accrued in three months after receiving the previous demerit point, a reduction of one point on the total number of demerit points will be recorded on the system

• A person’s driving licence card and the operator card of a motor vehicle must be handed in for the disqualification period

• Upon a third disqualification, the licences will be cancelled. A person must apply for a new learner’s licence and driving licence once the disqualification period is over

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