'Overloading must stop' - Peters

Minister of Transport Dipuo Peters has
urged the road freight industry to act
decisively against overloading of vehicles
– particularly in view of safety concerns.
She said regulatory control of the
sector needed to be improved.
“The sector has not shown enough
initiatives intended to reduce the
contributory factors leading to heavy
vehicles being involved in accidents,” she
said recently.
Peters said she’d spoken extensively
to Road Freight Association CEO,
Sharmini Naidoo, about the issues
of overloading and road safety and
remained unconvinced that all was
being done to address the issue.
“I believe more can be done by the
sector,” she said.
According to Peters, it was also
important that the road network was
not carrying more than it was designed
for. “The road damage caused by heavy
vehicles has been estimated to cost the
economy billions of rands.
She said government officials were
often confronted with various forms of
overloading.
“From having to deal with repeat
overloading by the same operators
or severe overloading where vehicles
are carrying 100% more than they
should it is a major problem. It has
become such a problem that some
operators are simply budgeting for
the fine they will get in the event
of being caught, while others have
escape routes ready with back-up
vehicles simply coming in to take
the cargo that is being stopped.”
She said the situation could not
continue unpunished. “It simply has
to stop. The question of self regulation
can never be over emphasised. The
department, in conjunction with the
provincial road traffic authorities, is
currently developing the national road
safety strategy to protect our road
infrastructure, to improve road safety
and to ensure the seamless movement
of cargo.”
CAPTION
Officials using the Weighing in Motion system to crack down on truck
overloading