Expect more roadblocks in South Africa – with new shift to 24/7 traffic police
Expect more traffic police presence and roadblocks on the roads across South Africa as the Department of Transport (DoT) plans to implement a 24/7 shift schedule for traffic police by March 2025.
The DoT noted that this strategy is a must to address the growing culture of lawlessness on the nation’s roads.
The plans follow years of concerns from stakeholders that the road safety situation in South Africa remains a problem, with calls to the government to make systematic changes to address the issues.
At the start of his year, The Automobile Association of South Africa (AA) noted that the decline in road fatalities in recent years is welcome, but more needs to be done.
“Human factors accounted for 80% of all deaths during the festive period, but this human factor—or driver behaviour—will only change over time, and our call continues to be for the government to ensure more law enforcers are made available to police our country’s roads.
“In addition, more education and awareness campaigns must be initiated throughout the year to prioritise road safety,” said the AA.
The AA added that urgent intervention is required to improve road safety.
Without such intervention, the AA says, the horrific road fatality numbers reported annually by the Department of Transport will simply not decrease meaningfully.
“The dire road safety situation in South Africa is a national crisis that costs the economy around R200 billion annually, according to the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC).
“Improving road safety will benefit all South Africans, and it is now incumbent upon the government to act decisively to ensure the situation improves,” the AA said.
In his inaugural address as the new Deputy Minister of Transport, Mkhuleko Hlengwa pledged to eliminate the obstacles that have hindered the implementation of round-the-clock visible traffic policing to tackle lawlessness during his tenure.
Hlengwa emphasised that the administration would expedite the resolution of all issues that have delayed the implementation of 24/7 visible traffic law enforcement across the country, particularly in high-accident zones on the road network.
Currently, only the Western Cape and the National Traffic Police have established a 24/7 shift system.
Hlengwa stressed the importance of all provinces expediting their processes to obtain approval for the shift system implementation to ensure officers’ visibility on the road at all times.
He also stated that the Department of Transport would oversee and ensure the introduction of the new shift system by 31 March 2025.
Hlengwa also mentioned that the Department of Transport (DoT) has allocated R196.99 million for the 2024/2025 period and another R204.26 million for the 2025/2026 period.
This funding is intended to recruit and train personnel and strengthen the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) ‘s overall capacities.
To professionalise traffic law enforcement, the RTMC will also elevate the minimum qualification requirements from equivalent to a matric to a post-matric Diploma level.
This change is aimed at creating a “high calibre of officers and recruits trained for effective professional policing.”
Hlengwa emphasised the need for the Arrive Alive Campaign to increase its efforts year-round, rather than just during seasonal campaigns.
According to Hlengwa, more visible policing could enhance road safety and reduce car accidents and fatalities.
In 2014, an average of 40 people died on the roads each day, with approximately 184 sustaining serious injuries.
Today, these numbers have decreased to 34 deaths and 157 serious injuries, despite a larger population and more vehicles on the roads.
Similarly, road fatalities dropped from 12,554 in 2020 to 11,883 in 2023.
Hlengwa credited the increased visibility of traffic officers for this improvement.
Continuous policing will also target non-roadworthy vehicles that are in operation daily across the country.
Around 10% of vehicles registered in South Africa are not roadworthy, with an average age of 11 years, contributing to the heightened risk of accidents and fatalities.
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