{"id":107847,"date":"2015-12-23T19:30:20","date_gmt":"2015-12-23T17:30:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=107847"},"modified":"2015-12-23T17:48:02","modified_gmt":"2015-12-23T15:48:02","slug":"what-traffic-law-says-you-can-be-arrested-for-on-the-spot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/trending\/107847\/what-traffic-law-says-you-can-be-arrested-for-on-the-spot\/","title":{"rendered":"What SA traffic law says you can be arrested for on the spot"},"content":{"rendered":"

Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) boss Makhosini Msibi has drawn criticism after issuing a warning yesterday that South African motorists will be arrested on the spot<\/a><\/strong> for several traffic offences this festive season.<\/p>\n

Among the offences listed were failing to wear a seatbelt, and driving without a license or expired vehicle license disc.<\/p>\n

\u201cMake no mistake, we are going to be arresting people,\u201d Msibi said.<\/p>\n

Justice Project South Africa (JPSA) chairman Howard Dembovsky responded to Msibi\u2019s announcement, saying that it was reckless for a person of his seniority to be making such outrageous, emotional statements.<\/p>\n

What you can actually be arrested for<\/h3>\n

To clarify things, the JPSA provided a list of traffic offences that are criminal under the 2008 AARTO Regulations.\u00a0These crimes can be summarised as follows.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Driving under the influence alcohol or drugs<\/strong>. This also applies if you occupy the driver\u2019s seat while under the influence, and the engine is\u00a0running.<\/li>\n
  2. Operating a vehicle recklessly<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
  3. Exceeding the speed limit\u00a0by 40km\/h or more<\/strong>. This applies to the general speed limit, and\u00a0speed limits prescribed by signs.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    It should be noted that the above traffic crimes are generalised summaries of 11 criminal offences listed in the AARTO regulations.<\/p>\n

    \u201cWhile it is true that the AARTO Act is only in force in the Cities of Johannesburg and Tshwane, and fines under the Criminal Procedure Act in force elsewhere in the country will differ, whether or not arrest is sanctioned cannot differ because the Constitution enshrines equality before the law,\u201d the JPSA\u00a0said.<\/p>\n

    It added\u00a0that overtaking on a solid line in the face of oncoming traffic, and\u00a0disregarding a red traffic signal could be interpreted as reckless and negligent driving, but both offences have admission of guilt fines attached to them.<\/p>\n

    A list of traffic offences published by the Road Traffic Infringement Agency is reproduced in the table below. Criminal offences under AARTO regulations are marked in red and emphasised.<\/p>\n

    \n
    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
    \n
    Infringements and demerit points<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Infringement<\/td>\nFine amount<\/td>\nDemerit points<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    \n
    Licences and\u00a0<\/strong>miscellaneous<\/b><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Driving an unregistered vehicle<\/td>\nR500<\/td>\n1<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Driving an unlicensed vehicle<\/td>\nR500<\/td>\n1<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Driving a vehicle with licence plate not visible<\/td>\nR500<\/td>\n1<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Driving without a driving licence<\/td>\nR1,250<\/td>\n4<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Driving without a seat belt<\/td>\nR250<\/td>\n0<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Driving under influence of intoxicating substance<\/span><\/td>\nDetermined by court<\/span><\/td>\n6<\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Driving while holding and using a cellphone<\/td>\nR500<\/td>\n1<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    \n
    Failing to stop<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Skipping a stop sign (light vehicles)<\/td>\nR500<\/td>\n1<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Skipping a stop sign (buses, trucks)<\/td>\nR750<\/td>\n2<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Skipping a red light (light vehicles)<\/td>\nR500<\/td>\n1<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Skipping a red light (buses, trucks)<\/td>\nR750<\/td>\n2<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Failing to yield to a pedestrian<\/td>\nR500<\/td>\n1<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    \n
    Overtaking and overloading<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Overtaking across a barrier line (light vehicles)<\/td>\nR500<\/td>\n1<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Overtaking across a barrier line (buses, trucks)<\/td>\nR750<\/td>\n2<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    Overloading a vehicle with max 56,000kg combination mass by 12-13.99%<\/td>\nR1,500<\/td>\n5<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    \n
    Speeding<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    81-85km\/h in a 60km\/h zone<\/td>\nR750<\/td>\n2<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    100km\/h+ in a 60km\/h zone<\/span><\/td>\nDetermined by court<\/span><\/td>\n6<\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    106-110km\/h in an 80km\/h zone<\/td>\nR1,000<\/td>\n3<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    120km\/h+ in an 80km\/h zone<\/span><\/td>\nDetermined by court<\/span><\/td>\n6<\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    121-125km\/h in a 100km\/h zone<\/td>\nR750<\/td>\n2<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    131-135km\/h in a 100km\/h zone<\/td>\nR1,250<\/td>\n4<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    140km\/h+ in a 100km\/h zone<\/span><\/td>\nDetermined by court<\/span><\/td>\n6<\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    131-135km\/h in a 120km\/h zone<\/td>\nR250<\/td>\n0<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    141-145km\/h in a 120km\/h zone<\/td>\nR750<\/td>\n2<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    151-155km\/h in a 120km\/h zone<\/td>\nR1,250<\/td>\n4<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
    160km\/h+ in a 120km\/h zone<\/span><\/td>\nDetermined by court<\/span><\/td>\n6<\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

    Reckless, outrageous, emotional statement from the RTMC: JPSA<\/h3>\n

    Dembovsky argued\u00a0that\u00a0Msibi\u2019s statements were reckless as it could\u00a0result in some traffic officers taking his claims\u00a0seriously, which would have severe consequences.<\/p>\n

    \u201cTraffic officers are granted limited powers under law in effecting arrests without a warrant and acting any differently would definitely provide people with an opportunity to lodge civil claims against the traffic authorities and the officers who arrest them for offences for which arrest is not prescribed,\u201d Dembovsky said.<\/p>\n

    Dembovsky wanted to note that the JPSA is not anti-traffic law enforcement, and neither does it\u00a0aim\u00a0to defend the actions of delinquent road users.<\/p>\n

    \u201cQuite the opposite in fact,\u201d he said. \u201cJPSA is very much in favour of proper physical and visible policing but we simply cannot allow the CEO\u2019s clearly misinformed assertions to go unchallenged.\u201d<\/p>\n

    What you can\u2019t be arrested for<\/h3>\n

    \u201cAs much as we all wish that we could convince everyone in motor cars, bakkies, trucks, minibuses (including taxis), and buses to wear seatbelts in the interests of their own safety, threatening them with arrest for not doing so is bizarre at best,\u201d the JPSA said.<\/p>\n

    \u201cSimilarly, failing to display a current licence disc on your vehicle\u2019s windscreen is not an offence for which you may be arrested and nor is forgetting to carry your driving licence with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

    It said that the CEO of the RTMC is either grossly misinformed about the powers traffic officers have, or he is using similar scare tactics to those his predecessor tried.<\/p>\n

    Such tactics have repeatedly proven themselves to be totally ineffective, the JPSA said.<\/p>\n

    More on crime<\/h3>\n

    Watch: Students loot Tshwane University cafe<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

    Watch: Crafty thief steals handbag from Pretoria restaurant<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

    Watch: policeman in high speed shootout speaks out<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Justice Project South Africa has criticised the list of 9 offences the CEO of Road Traffic Management Corporation said motorists could be arrested for on the spot.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":31,"featured_media":93302,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[26,3259],"class_list":["post-107847","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trending","tag-headline","tag-traffic"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107847","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/31"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107847"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107847\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":107855,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107847\/revisions\/107855"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/93302"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107847"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107847"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107847"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}