A NEWS item on Cargo
Info Africa, FTW’s sister
online publication, has
generated considerable
reader feedback on the
punishment meted out for
traffic transgressions, with
particular reference to
truck drivers.
The article pointed out
that while the number of
road accidents involving
trucks – and motor vehicles
– was well documented
in the media, follow-up
coverage on the punishment
of guilty drivers was less
evident.
In this context reference
was made to an article in
UK-based freight journal
IFW. It recorded the case
of a truck driver jailed for
eight years and banned
from driving for life after
he fell asleep at the wheel
of his 18-tonne lorry while
travelling along the M20
in Kent.
The truck ploughed into
an oncoming BMW, instantly
killing its two occupants.
Most of the feedback
has been in favour of stiffer
sentences in South Africa. “I
believe the law should come
down far more heavily not
only on truck/bus drivers
but also the owners of the
businesses for whom these
drivers work,” said Grant
Fraser.
Industry commentators
told FTW that the severity
of this punishment was not
unusual in the UK – but that
in South Africa, very often,
punishment amounted to
little more than a slap on
the wrist.
Gavin Kelly, technical and
operations manager of the
Road Freight Association and
chairman of the Committee
for Active Road Safety
(CARS), told FTW it was
quite easy to find out what
sentences had been handed
out to individuals in SA
through the reported cases
or through any legal library.
In a recent incident in SA,
he told FTW, the personal
driver of the Minister of
Transport was allegedly four
times over the legal limit
allowed by the Road Traffic
Act – but did not incur the
R20 000 maximum fine
whereas others who have
been “over the limit” have
received harsher sentences.
One industry source
however felt that the new
points demerit system,
currently in pilot phase in
Tshwane, was a huge step in
the right direction. It is one element of the
Administrative Adjudication
of Traffic Offences Act
(AARTO) that appears to
have most resonance with
the public and one which
has been most effective in
reducing traffic offences in a
number of other countries,
according to the Road Traffic
Management Corporation
(RTMC).
It will however only be
introduced in the national
roll-out in early 2009, and is
not part of the Tshwane pilot
project.
In a nutshell, if a driver
commits a traffic offence,
a predetermined number
of points allocated to that
offence will be awarded
against his licence. After 12
points have been exceeded,
there is an automatic
driving ban for a period in
months equal to 3 times the
number of points by which
12 is exceeded i.e. if a driver
reaches 14 points he will be
banned from driving for a
period of 6 months.
‘Business owners should face prosecution for drivers’ offences’
22 Aug 2008 - by Staff reporter
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