Enforcement key to cutting down on road carnage

More stringent enforcement of existing road regulations rather than the introduction of new initiatives is key to addressing the country’s road safety record. The ban on trucks driving on public roads during peak times (06:00 to 09:00 and 17:00 to 20:00) is not the way to go, according to the road freight industry. “There are enough road regulations but there is not enough enforcement. If the roads were properly regulated and those tasked with the enforcement of the regulations were properly trained, conditions on the roads would improve significantly,” Adrian van Tonder from the Road Traffic Management System (RTMS) told delegates at a Logistics Business Breakfast in Johannesburg last week. Responding to industry objections to the proporsed truck ban, Mihlali Gqada, transport logistics and economic specialist at the DoT, said: “The DoT has to look at the logistics industry as a whole and ensure the seamless movement of goods as well as the protection of all road users, which means cutting down on accidents. We cannot simply look at how it affects one section of the industry.” Van Tonder suggested that the DoT and road freight industry collectively look at the root cause of road accidents in general and then find ways to address this. “We all agree that the carnage on our roads is unacceptable, but the trucking industry makes up a very small percentage of those accidents. In fact, the majority of accidents involve pedestrians. Let’s rather focus on the base of the problem and find a base solution,” he said. He further proposed that road regulations include a form on mandatory driver training and regular fleet maintenance. “There are a number of causes of accidents and there are other, more practical ways to cut down on road accidents. Taking trucks off the roads will simply postpone the rate of accidents,” Van Tonder pointed out. Road Freight Association spokesman Gavin Kelly agreed with van Tonder, adding that it wasn’t just a law enforcement issue when it came to cutting down on fatal and serious accidents. “There are some serious cowboys on the road – truck drivers, taxi drivers and bus drivers among them – yet they are back on the roads after a few months even after they’ve caused serious accidents where lives have been lost. We should be focusing on getting the cowboys off the roads for good.” He commented that industry and government needed to stop being ‘reactive’ but rather get together from the start of a problem and work together on a solution. CAPTION Panel members at the Logistics Business Breakfast… Adrian van Tonder, Gavin Kelly and Dave Watts.