Although spiking attempts can happen anytime, they are more likely to occur after dark. The perpetrators take advantage of the darkness to hide the hazards from unsuspecting drivers until it’s too late for them to brake or avoid the spikes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The main objective of these criminals is to damage a vehicle, particularly its tyres, causing the driver to pull over and assess the situation. These criminals mainly use spikes made from nails and wood or big stones and other objects. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Once the driver pulls over, they are vulnerable to robbery and may lose their possessions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Abramjee highlighted that the notable hotspots for spiking at the moment are the N4 from Pretoria to Rustenburg and the N4 on the way to Mpumalanga. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This seems to correlate to the hotspots registered by the Gauteng Traffic Police, which identified the following as spiking hotspots:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Abramjee added that incidents have been reported on secondary adjacent roads in and around those areas. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Gauteng Traffic Police added these criminals move from one area to the other, where the roads are quiet, to rob motorists of their hard-earned cash and other belongings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “These incidents happen especially on Friday evenings and throughout the weekend between 18h00 and 04h00 in the morning<\/strong>,” said the Traffic Police. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It has also been noted that spiking cases tend to rise over the weekend on quiet stretches of road, as this increases the odds of the criminals catching a lone vehicle unawares.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Due to the low visibility and high speeds at which they occur, the nature of the crime makes it quite difficult to completely safeguard oneself from the criminals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/spikes-on-SA-road-1024x576.jpg\")
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