Traffic volumes are expected to increase on the roads in several provinces over the long Easter Weekend and motorists have been warned traffic officers will be on high alert for drunk drivers and those not adhering to the rules of the road.
The North West Department of Transport Management, said law enforcement officers will be placed throughout the province, to ensure the adherence to the rules of the road.
This emerged on Tuesday when MEC Sello Lehari, launched the province’s Easter Traffic Plans at Brits, North West.
Lehari said law enforcement officers will conduct roadblocks, stop and search operations, to ensure the safety of all road users.
“We have planned for the whole province, including the four districts, Bojanala, Ngaka Modiri Molema, Dr Kenneth Kaunda and Dr Ruth Mogomotsi Mompati districts.
“Our law enforcement officers and SAPS are all over the province as we have divided ourselves amongst the four districts. We are doing what we call stop and search and major roadblocks, where all stakeholders are included.
“Today, we’re from Madibeng and SAPS, traffic officers, immigration, home affairs were all there. We are doing this to remind the people of the province that they must be extremely careful during the Easter holidays.
“We are definitely sure that when motorists respect the rules of the roads, we are going to decrease fatalities and crashes on the road.
“For example, in December last year, we reduced fatalities and crashes on the roads by 21%. We were one of the best provinces in terms of reducing the number of deaths on our roads. So our plan is very clear, we are going to do that until after the 15th of April,’ said Lehari.
Last year, 162 people died on South Africa’s roads over the Easter period, with North West recording 11 deaths.
Statistics from the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) show that 270 people died on the country’s roads over the Easter period in 2021.
