The Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) has urged motorists to exercise extreme caution when driving in rainy conditions.
This as the South African Weather Services has forecast rain in most parts of the country, which may cause localised flooding.
Several people have been killed and others reported missing after their cars were swept away by flash floods in Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal.
Motorists in Gauteng, North West, Mpumalanga, Eastern Cape and Free State have also been warned to exercise caution due to the extreme wet weather conditions.
The RTMC said with some travellers starting to make back from holidays, the roads are expected to see a slight increase in traffic volumes from Wednesday.
“The RTMC urges motorists to reduce speed, keep a safe following distance, have lights on and avoid crossing flooded bridges.
Motorists must also ensure that vehicles are in a roadworthy state.
Lights, wipers, windscreens, brakes, and tyres must be checked before the start of the journey,” read a statement from RTMC.
The Corporation warned would-be offenders that officers will not hesitate to arrest those who don’t obey the road rules.
“More than 1738 vehicles have been discontinued and 3340 impounded since the start of the festive season on December 1.
More than 4160 motorists have been arrested.
The majority were held for drunken driving while others were detained for producing false documents and driving public transport contrary to operating permits,” added the statement.
The RTMC also reminded public transport operators to ensure that their drivers have proper documents to drive, and the vehicles are used on permitted routes and are not overloaded.
