Few South Africans pay traffic fines

Sapa | 30 December, 2012 10:45

Image by: http://www.joburg.org.za/police

Only a fraction of South Africans pay their traffic fines, according to reports.

The annual report of the Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA) revealed that motorists on the national contraventions register owe R1.6 billion in outstanding traffic fines issued in the Tshwane and Johannesburg metro municipalities, City Press reported.

According to the RTIA report, motorists in Tshwane and Johannesburg racked up fines of R980 million between April 2011 and March 2012, but have paid fines worth only R86 million (nine percent of the total value).

Tshwane and Johannesburg were the only metro municipalities which participated in the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) pilot phase.

Aarto makes provision for a contravention register that captures outstanding traffic fines countrywide. Aarto will also prevent drivers with outstanding traffic fines from renewing their vehicle and driver's licences.

Transport Minister Ben Martins was expected to announce the introduction of the Aarto Act early next year. RTIA was set up to implement the act.

Of the 1.8 million fines issued in the Johannesburg and Tshwane metros in the past financial year, only 251,125 (14 percent ) were paid.

KZN MEC stops fitness tests for traffic officer jobs

 

Sapa | 30 December, 2012 08:24

Willies Mchunu
Image by: THULI DLAMINI © Sowetan.

KwaZulu-Natal transport MEC Willies Mchunu has suspended all tests for Road Traffic Inspectorate jobs after seven people died.

The SABC reported that he said he would investigate the incident whereby "scores" of people who were trying to get a job at the road traffic inspectorate, collapsed during a fitness test.

"More than 34,000 applicants qualified for the 90 trainee posts which were advertised," said Mchunu in a statement.

He said that 15,600 applicants attended a fitness test at the Harry Gwala Stadium on Thursday, and a similar number attended on Friday.

"Scores of them could not cope with the hot weather condition and collapsed."

Many were taken to hospital.

Six die at traffic cop fitness test

 

Sapa | 29 December, 2012 15:26

KZN traffic police insignia.

Six people have died from suspected dehydration after taking part in a KwaZulu-Natal traffic department recruitment fitness test,

Another person apparently committed suicide in frustration after the test, SABC news  reported.

Provincial Transport, Community Safety and Liaison MEC Willies Mchunu could not be reached for comment about the deaths.

However, in a statement on Saturday he said he would investigate the incident whereby "scores" of people who were trying to get a job at the road traffic inspectorate, collapsed during a fitness test.

"More than 34,000 applicants qualified for the 90 trainee posts which were advertised," said Mchunu in a statement.

He said that 15,600 applicants attended a fitness test at the Harry Gwala Stadium on Thursday, and a similar number attended on Friday.

"Scores of them could not cope with the hot weather condition and collapsed."

Many were taken to hospital.

Mchunu said that he would meet with those in charge of the test on Saturday.

"We regret any injuries or lost of lives as a result of the fitness test," he said.

Drivers take eyes off road for a fifth of each journey

 

THE ALARMING extent to which drivers lose concentration has been highlighted by researchers.

Motorists take their eyes off the road for almost a fifth of their time behind the wheel, rising to nearly a quarter if they use a GPS device, a study has found.

Evidence from revolutionary eye-tracking technology shows that drivers take their eyes off the road every nine seconds on average, attracted by passing clouds, adverts, scenery and a host of other distractions.

The results emerged after the researchers took 100 drivers and recorded where their eyes were focused during a 22-minute drive through a city. Specialist glasses pinpointed the exact focus of the eye by tracking microscopic movements in the cornea.

The experiment was captured on film and enabled researchers to establish exactly where drivers focused their vision.

The study found that average drivers spent 18 percent of their time behind the wheel not watching the road. Those who used GPS devices spend 22 percent of their time focused away from the road. They spent 12 percent of their time behind the wheel looking at their GPS devices, and 10 percent on other distractions.

For a driver travelling from London to Brighton, a journey of one and half hours, this is equivalent to 11 minutes with their eyes fixed on their GPS screen.

Average motorists spend 7 percent of their time behind the wheel looking at buildings, clouds and scenery, 0.8 percent of it gazing at adverts, 0.7 percent reading maps, 0.2 percent checking the radio, and 0.1 percent looking at their passengers, according to the study. Only 2 percent of their time is spent looking at oncoming vehicles and 0.6 percent observing road signs.

They spend the same amount of time – 3 percent – watching pedestrians who are not crossing the road as they do checking their mirrors.

But analysis of film footage showed that while both men and women were distracted by good-looking pedestrians, only men turned their heads completely away from the road as a result.

Simon Henrick, a spokesman for Direct Line car insurance, which commissioned the study, said: “For the first time we know exactly where people focus their eyes when driving – the results are frightening.

“Even when drivers appear to be watching the road, by tracking movements in the cornea we now know they are often watching clouds or shop window displays.”

Separate research by the Money supermarket.com website says three quarters of motorists admit being distracted behind the wheel.

The main distractions include fiddling with the radio or CD changer (54 percent), drinking a beverage or eating a snack (47 percent for each), making a call or SMSing on a cellphone (16 percent for each) and dozing (4 percent). – Daily Mail

Sleepy, drunken drivers equally bad

 

Created: Thursday, May 31, 2012

Being sleepy behind the wheel is almost as bad as drinking and driving, suggests a new study from France.

The study, published as a letter in the Archives of Internal Medicine, found that drivers who were either drunk or sleepy were at least twice as likely to be responsible for a vehicle accident compared to well-rested and sober drivers.

Christopher Drake, an associate scientist at the Henry Ford Hospital Sleep Disorders and Research Center in Detroit, said the findings do not change what was already known, but the study is still "interesting".
Being tired dangerous if you're driving

"We know from experimental studies that just four hours of sleep loss will produce as much impairment as a six pack. If you have a whole night of sleep loss, that's equivalent to having a blood alcohol content of 0.19," Drake, who was not involved with the new research, said.

Under the direction of Dr Nicholas Moore at the Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire de Bordeaux in France, researchers analysed information from 679 drivers who were admitted to a hospital in southwest France for more than 24 hours because of a serious accident between 2007 and 2009.

The researchers used information from driver questionnaires and police reports to determine what may have contributed to the accidents. Drivers reported what medications they were on, their alcohol use and how sleepy they had been before the crash. Patient files provided information on blood alcohol levels.

The majority of the injured drivers were under 55 years old and men. Over half were on a motorcycle, about one-third were in a car and 10% were peddling a bicycle at the time of the accident.

The police determined that 355 of the drivers were responsible for their respective crashes. From that, Dr. Moore and his colleagues found that age between 18 and 29, drinking alcohol and being sleepy were all tied to an increased risk of causing an accident.
Hard to punish sleepy drivers

Surprisingly, taking medications that carry warnings about affecting a driver's abilities - one of the researchers' main focuses - was tied to a lower risk of causing an accident.

Dr Moore said that may be because people taking those medications are more aware of their side effects. "Medicinal drugs might be an issue to keep an eye on and warn people about, but it's not the main issue," he said.

There are some laws in the US to punish sleepy drivers, but Drake said they are hard to enforce unless someone gets into an accident.

"It's very difficult. There is no breathalyzer for sleepiness," he said.

The study did have some limitations. Some of the questions are based on the patients' own reports, which may be subjective. Also, there is no way to know how many accidents sleepiness actually caused.

Overall, Dr Moore said the best advice is, "don't drink and please sleep." "There is no substitute for sleep," said Dr Drake.
(Reuters Health, May 2012)

59 ROAD DEATHS SINCE START OF DECEMBER

Mecrobin Carlisle says accident rate on W Cape roads highest in three years

FIFTY-nine people have died on Western Cape roads since the start of the month, Transport MEC Robin Carlisle has revealed.

PICTURES: DAVID RITCHIEXXXXXXXXXX HEAVY LOAD Taxi drivers pack passenger luggage onto a trailer at the Joe Gqabi taxi rank in Philippi yesterday

Speaking at the launch of the Retail Motor Industry Organisation’s annual free testing period yesterday, Carlisle said: “In the first nine days of December, 59 people were killed on Western Cape roads. This is far in excess of last year, and the worst [fatality rate] we have had in three years.”

Carlisle added that the carnage happened in spite of the intensive and extensive measures put in place on roads over the festive season.

He said that sleepy motorists in the Western Cape would have their car keys confiscated for four hours in a move to lower accidents caused by fatigue.

Based on the opinion of traffic officers, drivers who were tired would be asked to park in a safe area and their keys kept from them. Once the four hours had elapsed, their keys would be returned so they could resume their journey.

This measure would be implemented only if there was not another licensed and capable person in the vehicle to take over the driving.

Carlisle said the National Road Traffic Act empowered officers to stop people from driving if they were incapable at the time, either physically or mentally.

“A fatigued driver is just as dangerous as a drunken driver,” he said.

In an attempt to reduce road carnage over the festive season, longdistance taxis and other vehicles will be given free safety tests as part of the Retail Motor Industry Organisation’s annual free testing period.

The testing period allows for longdistance travellers to go to the participating AVTS testing stations for a safety check, which includes checking the vehicle’s brakes, suspension and headlights.

AVTS managing director Ferose Oaten said it was a privilege for the company to be a part of the free safety inspections.

She said the free vehicle checks would run until Friday. These were not roadworthy tests but safety checks that served as an early warning to operators and drivers.

Brett Herron, mayoral committee for transport, was confident that the checks could reduce road crashes.

“If we can combine the law and safer vehicles we will make a greater impact on carnage over the festive season as we will have safer vehicles on the roads,” Herron said.

Meanwhile at the Joe Gqabi interchange, in Philippi, long-distance taxi driver Thabo Toana said he had not heard about the free vehicle testing and that his vehicle had last been tested six months ago.

He said he was preparing to leave today and had 20 passengers booked in his Iveco van.

Toana was one of many taxi drivers and travellers preparing to hit the road and visit other parts of South Africa. He added that it got very busy around December 15.

“This weekend will be really busy, but I have a second driver with me so when I get tired he starts to drive,” Toana said.

Blitz on sleepy drivers

 

December 10 2012

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David Ritchie

ROUGH: Robin Carlisle said he had no idea whether it was legal to confiscate a drivers car keys, but I dont care.

Caryn Dolley

SLEEPY motorists will now be pulled off the road, forced to rest and have their vehicle’s keys confiscated, in a drastic move by provincial traffic authorities who say they will push ahead even if it is illegal.

The initial fatigue management plan aimed at public transport has been operating for a year, but yesterday provincial traffic chief Kenny Africa said he had extended it three days ago to include all drivers.

He had been advised to do so by Transport and Public Works MEC Robin Carlisle.

Yesterday Carlisle said 54 people had died in road accidents in the province since the start of December and at least 25 were fatigue-related.

Asked if it was legal to confiscate drivers’ keys and force them to rest, he said: “I have no idea, but I don’t care either... We’ve got no option but to pull out all the stops, whether illegal or legal... I just don’t know what else to do than to become very rough.”

Local criminal lawyer William Booth said there had to be a law in place in order for traffic officers to carry it out, but as far as he was aware no such law existed and there was no legal basis for it to be done.

Automobile Association of SA spokesman Gary Ronald said while it would be “very difficult” to measure fatigue, even if the measure was illegal, he believed its intention was good.

“It’s a great initiative just to get the message across.”

Ronald said fatigue played a “massive” role in road deaths, and truck drivers were among those worst affected by it.

Yesterday Africa confirmed that the measure would be carried out. He had sent out an urgent message on Friday notifying traffic officers to be on the lookout for sleepy drivers.

He said officers would look out for symptoms including red eyes and drowsiness when trying to identify a tired driver.

If an officer felt a driver was fatigued, the officer would confiscate the driver’s keys and park the vehicle in a safe spot. The traffic officer would then watch over the resting driver.

Africa said if the driver was “obviously fatigued”, he or she would be made to rest for two to three hours.

The public transport fatigue management plan started on December 22 last year and Africa said one of the first drivers was pulled over near the Huguenot Tunnel.

After being forced to rest for two hours, he said officers had been unable to rouse the driver as he was sleeping so deeply.

In one of the latest fatigue clampdowns, Africa said between 8pm on Saturday and 6am yesterday on the “death stretch”, the road between Beaufort West, Laingsburg and Aberdeen, traffic officers had stopped 17 000 taxis.

Of these, he said 3 000 drivers had appeared fatigued and were “parked”.

“We confiscated their (vehicle) keys to enforce rest.”

Africa warned other drivers that this would happen to them regardless of the type of vehicle they drove or the road they were spotted on.

Another matter authorities were focusing on was drunk driving.

At the weekend, 19 drunk

drivers were arrested around the province.

Yesterday National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesman Eric Ntabazalila said the NPA was focusing on the main count related to drunk driving – driving under the influence of alcohol.

This was different to the alternative count a driver could face, of driving with a blood alcohol content above the legal limit.

“The main count is more serious and carries a harsher penalty,” Ntabazalila said.

A driver could face a R180 000 fine or nine months imprisonment, or both, if found guilty of driving under the influence of alcohol.

Ntabazalila said while the NPA was focusing on the driving under the influence of alcohol count, blood samples would still be taken from suspected drunk drivers so that if there was not enough evidence to support the main count, the State could pursue the alternative blood alcohol content count.

Regional justice department head Hishaam Mohamed said the department welcomed any measures that would lead to greater accountability.

“However, a blood alcohol test remains the primary evidentiary proof for the successful conviction of drunken driving,” he said.

Mohamed said the turnaround time for blood test results was between three to eight months, which was “obviously unacceptable”.

He hoped the forensic laboratory in Plattekloof would reduce the turnaround time.

caryn.dolley@inl.co.za

SIX DIE AS SAFETY CAMPAIGN STARTS

Father comes upon bodies of his four children after gruesome road crash

A FATHER’S worst nightmare has unfolded on a Cape “road of death”.

PICTURE: WILLIAM GROENEWALDGRUESOME This Venture smashed into an oncoming truck and all six people inside were killed

The man from Cape Town was travelling to the Eastern Cape at around 7am yesterday. His four children and two of their uncles were in a second vehicle, a Toyota Venture mini-van.

They were due to meet up in Laingsburg, provincial traffic chief Kenny Africa said. But, somehow, they missed each other. The Venture had continued on the N1 to Beaufort West.

Shortly after, ambulances left Laingsburg, heading towards Beaufort West too. The father followed them in his own car, Africa said. And around 40km along the N1, he and the ambulances came upon a terrible scene.

The Venture had smashed into an oncoming truck and all six people inside had been killed.

The truck driver told officers the Venture veered into his on-coming lane and they had connected head-on.

At the time of going to press, police spokesman Andre Traut said neither names nor ages had been released.

Africa said about 26 people had died on the road this festive season so far and they were planning to bring the number down from last year where 139 people died on the road during the festive season.

The latest tragedy unfolded on precisely the same day that a Western Cape provincial government cluster of MECs – Community Safety, Transport and Health – launched the seasonal “Safely Home” campaign.

Community Safety MEC Dan Plato said: “We will increase the detection and prosecution of road traffic offences by having all staff on duty, and will once again run a 24-hours-a-day, 7days-a-week operation. We will also have road blocks throughout the province and will stop and check at least 200 000 vehicles during the 2012/13 festive season.”

Transport MEC Robin Carlisle said that between December 1, last year, and January 31, this year, 243 people were killed on the province’s roads.

“The province is determined to bring that number down significantly,” he vowed.

“We are on track to reduce road deaths by 50 percent by December 2014. As of the end of November, we have reduced the fatalities by 29 percent. Over the next two months, I want to see that reduction go well past the 30 percent mark.”

The trio said Safely Home activities over this festive season would include:

The new Average Speed Over Distance (Asod) camera network enforcement system on 31.7km of road on the Three Sisters-Beaufort West to Laingsburg “death stretch” , adding to the already existing 71.6km Asod system on the Beaufort West to Aberdeen (R61) stretch.

A partnership with SANational Taxi Council’s (Santaco) “Hlokomela” project, the goal of which is to “change the face of the taxi industry” through its road safety initiative. Industry leaders will be assisting officials at ranks and road blocks to identify unroadworthy vehicles and address drivers on safety and the need for regular rests.

Various enforcement efforts that include fatigue management.

Other activities centred around speeding, drunk driving, and pedestrians (who account for half the fatalities in the province). Carlisle urged: “Switch on your headlights over the festive season, and please exercise patience. There will be congestion at times, this is just a natural result of everyone wanting to experience the same fun and festivities as you do. Be patient, and our traffic officers will do their best to ease the situation.”

Health MEC Theuns Botha added: “EMS will be present on the N1, N2, N7, R62, R61 and R27, and medical response teams will be on standby to support staff at rural hospitals. This year we will also be working with taxi operators to facilitate the transport of stranded passengers. Cross-border assistance will be rendered on the N1 and N7 for the Northern Cape, and on the N2, R61 and N12 for the Eastern Cape.

“On days when large-scale partying is anticipated, EMS will have satellite operational points,” Botha reported. – AdditionalreportingbyNeoMaditla

CITY ROLLS OUT CAMERAS

 

Carlisle pleased with the additional attempts to make the roads safer for travellers

SUPER-SMARTcamera networks – to nab speeding drivers – are to be installed in five sites across Cape Town.

SIGN OF TIMES Five speed-over-distance cameras, such as the one on the R61, will be installed around Cape Town

New plans for “average speed over distance” ( Asod) cameras were announced by the City of Cape Town’s mayco member for safety and security, JP Smith yesterday.

Among them is the M3, Table Bay Boulevard, Nelson Mandela Boulevard and other roads yet to be decided. Already, there is a system on the M5 – but no further exact sites have been identified other than somewhere on the M3, which runs between Hospital Bend and Lakeside.

A new Asod network was launched on one of the province’s “death roads”, just outside Beaufort West and 31.7km towards Three Sisters.

The project was initially implemented in October last year on a 71.6km stretch of road between Beaufort West and Aberdeen on the R61 – the longest camera network of its kind in the world.

Transport MEC Robin Carlisle’s office said of the plan: “Prior to the initial implementation on the R61 stretch from Beaufort West to Aberdeen, there had been a reported 509 crashes in total, 75 of which being fatal crashes resulting in the loss of 149 lives – this over the previous 12 years.

“Since the implementation of Asod on the R61 stretch, we have received no reports of any fatal crashes on that stretch.”

“We are very proud to add yet another weapon to our law enforcement The Average Speed Over Distance system calculates the average speed of a vehicle from the time it passes the first camera until it passes the second camera. The average speed is then determined by what it has taken a vehicle to travel from point A (where the first camera is located) to point B (where the second camera is located). Reaching point B in a time shorter than is determined by the distance and the speed limit, means that the driver is speeding. arsenal.

“This new Asod now means that a total of 103.3km of the province’s most dangerous roads are now covered by this camera enforcement network,” Carlisle said.

“This will have a profound effect on our continued battle to reduce the carnage on the road.

“The figures show that our efforts are working.

“We have achieved the fastest and most significant road death reduction in the world, a reduction of 28 percent since we started with Safely Home in 2009.

“A major challenge has been the ill- discipline that exists among motorists on the road.

“Vehicles driving below the speed limit of 120km/h have risen from 61 percent to 74 percent, and conversely, those driving over the speed limit have gone down from 39 percent to 26 percent.

“This is a remarkable improvement that shows that more and more drivers are in fact slowing down.” Carlisle said his department and partners Sanral were looking at extending the network to Touwsrivier and the R27.

“Roads are becoming increasingly dangerous, and slowing down is often the difference between life and death,” Carlisle said.

Carlisle responds to red light fiasco

December 6 2012

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Dear Man Friday, When I read your piece “Don’t Cape Town drivers understand the elementary laws of physics?” (Cape Times, November 30) it immediately resonated. Your wishes are not different to mine and JP Smith’s.

Yes – too many Cape Town drivers don’t understand the elementary laws of physics, and go to meet their Maker looking surprised.

We have about 1 000 traffic officers in the province. Many of our units operate 24/7 – so divide by three. Others are in court, on holiday, have the flu.

Between them, they manage, as best they can, over 20 000kms of roads; thousands of intersections; 10 000 minibus taxis; 2 000 buses and 1.2 million other vehicles. Each year, some 1.5 million vehicles are stopped at road blocks or tested at weighbridges. Each year some 200 000 fines are issued.

It’s tough being a traffic officer. Long, unforgiving hours, attending at often horrific accidents and not much tea and sympathy from the road using public.

Man Friday says we should have more men on the beat – JP and I agree, but the contest for available funds is intense.

Also on Man Friday’s wish list is cameras. We have them, but not enough. The Freeway Management System operates a 24-hour total camera coverage of the N1 from the CBD to Huguenot, the N2 from the CBD to Sir Lowry’s Pass and the R300. Some 400kms of our most dangerous roads are now camera monitored for average speed over distance. Two of our most dangerous level crossings are also camera monitored. The ghost squad cars bristle with electronic and camera technology.

But Man Friday is correct, we need more officers, more cameras and much better results from the criminal justice system.

But here’s the thing – with what little we have got, we have achieved an incredible reduction in fatalities. According to my research, no other country or region has brought down its fatality rate faster and more significantly than the Western Cape.

From January 2009 to November 2012 we have reduced fatalities from 1 739 per 12-month period to 1 243 – a reduction of 29 percent. Our fatality statistics are indeed deadly accurate. They are provided by the very efficient forensic services of the provincial Health Department – what the general public would refer to as the mortuary services.

I have enormous admiration for our men and women on the traffic beat – give or take a few rotten apples. They have every reason to be proud of themselves and their remarkable achievements.

That being said, the greatest contribution to safer roads is the interest shown by the media. Every article and interview heightens safety awareness, and when Man Friday enters this field – well, that’s powerful stuff.

Drunken driving has declined significantly in the last three years – we can see that clearly from our roadblock statistics. No question that the media coverage of those roadblocks and of our Shadow Centres played a huge part in changing drink/driving behaviour.

Man Friday should know that we are not complacent. Each year we will add to the road safety armoury.

Finally, there are some road users that will never understand the laws of physics. The only law that they will understand is the one that puts them in prison.

Here again some small progress is being made. Two killer drivers have gone to jail for 20 and eight years respectively. We are awaiting sentencing of the bus driver who rolled off the N1 on the De Doorns heights, as well as the speedster who diced down the M3 killing a young woman on the University bend.

JP and I know that fines and suspended sentences will never stop these killings – only jail will get the message to the drivers with fast cars and small brains.

We hope that what we are doing will put some comfort in Man Friday’s Christmas stocking.

Robin Carlisle

Minister of Transport and

Public Works

Western Cape Government