{"id":239791,"date":"2018-04-23T09:07:48","date_gmt":"2018-04-23T07:07:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=239791"},"modified":"2018-04-23T09:17:00","modified_gmt":"2018-04-23T07:17:00","slug":"south-africas-new-proposed-laws-for-passing-cyclists-on-the-road-and-3-others-you-need-to-know-about","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/motoring\/239791\/south-africas-new-proposed-laws-for-passing-cyclists-on-the-road-and-3-others-you-need-to-know-about\/","title":{"rendered":"South Africa&#8217;s new proposed laws for passing cyclists on the road &#8211; and 3 others you need to know about"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>On Friday (20 April), the Department of Transport <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.za\/sites\/default\/files\/41586_gon453.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">published<\/a> <\/strong>a number of proposed amendments to the\u00a0National Road Traffic Regulations for public comment.<\/p>\n<p>The changes cover a wide range of issues with amendments being considered for &#8216;tuk tuks&#8217;, microdot security and even the requirements for passing a cyclist on the road.<\/p>\n<p>BusinessTech looked at four standout proposed amendments and how they will affect you:<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Passing a cyclist<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The new amendment effectively states that cyclists should be treated the same way as any other vehicle.<\/p>\n<p>This means that the driver should pass the cyclist on the\u00a0right at a distance of 1.2 metres and should not again drive on the left side of the roadway until safely clear of the cyclist.<\/p>\n<p>It also notes that passing on the left of a cyclist would be permissible if the person driving the passing vehicle can do so with safety to themselves, the cyclist, other traffic and:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The bicycle being passed is turning to its right, or the cyclist has signalled their intention of turning to the right;<\/li>\n<li>The road is a public road in an urban area and is restricted to vehicles moving in one direction; and the roadway is of sufficient width for two or more lines of moving vehicles including bicycles;<\/li>\n<li>The road is a public road in an urban area and the roadway is of sufficient width for two or more lines of moving vehicles moving in each direction;<\/li>\n<li>The roadway of such road is restricted to vehicles moving in one direction and is divided into traffic lanes by appropriate road traffic signs;<\/li>\n<li>Drivers are driving in compliance with the directions of a traffic officer or are driving in traffic which is under the general direction of such officer, and in accordance with such direction.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Microdots\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>One of the biggest proposed changes is the regulation of microdots placed on South African vehicles.<\/p>\n<p>Microdots have seen increasing popularity as a safety feature on South African vehicles, and are classified as a particle with a\u00a0diameter smaller than 1.8 mm which bears a unique optically readable microdot identifier &#8211; typically the vehicle&#8217;s 17-digit VIN number or another registered PIN.<\/p>\n<p>The new regulations establish a &#8216;Microdot Certification Body&#8217; which will be responsible for registering, monitoring and approving all\u00a0microdot manufacturers, fitters, sellers and distributors in the country.<\/p>\n<p>In addition there are a number of new requirements that must be met before allowing someone to become a manufacturer, fitter, seller or distributor of microdots in the country.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Motor tricycles<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>While tuk-tuks and other motor tricycles have become <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/motoring\/175263\/what-the-law-says-about-tuk-tuks-on-south-african-roads\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">increasingly<\/a> <\/strong>popular on South African roads, one of the proposed amendments states that no person may carry a passenger in one of these vehicles for a reward (ie as a paid passenger).<\/p>\n<p>The proposed amendment also adds that no person shall be issued with an operating licence to carry any person for reward with a motor tricycle.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Taking away your licence<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In recent months the department of transport has made a point of clamping down on corruption in vehicle testing centres and motorists who were effectively bribing their way to a license.<\/p>\n<p>As such, it has outlined the process to be followed when finding that a license has been issued fraudulently.<\/p>\n<p>According to the new amendment, upon being notified that a learner, provisional, or driver&#8217;s licence was issued irregularly (and after a full investigation has been conducted), the MEC of the province may be allowed to cancel the licence.<\/p>\n<p>The holder of the licence must then be given 14 days to explain in writing why they should be allowed to keep it.<\/p>\n<p>If the MEC of the province concerned is not satisfied with the reasons furnished, he or she shall inform the holder who is then required to hand-in the license for destruction.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Read:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/motoring\/239225\/when-are-estate-roads-considered-public-or-private-in-south-africa\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">When are estate roads considered public or private in South Africa?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The changes cover a wide of range issues with amendments being considered for tuk tuks, microdot security and even the requirements when passing a cyclist on the road.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":239851,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11119],"tags":[26],"class_list":["post-239791","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-motoring","tag-headline"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239791","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\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=239791"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239791\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":239861,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239791\/revisions\/239861"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/239851"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=239791"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=239791"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=239791"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}