Anyone using a mobile telephone while driving is a potential murderer.
That’s the view of Western Cape provincial traffic chief, Kenny Africa, who says distracted drivers and overloading are the two areas on which traffic authorities focus - particularly in the freight sector.
“Overloaded vehicles remain a problem, as do distracted drivers. In the Western Cape all road users’ cell phones are confiscated if used while driving.
“In terms of overloading, there are eight provincial weighbridges currently in operation 24 hours a day, seven days a week. We have also implemented a system where we now have screening mats to weigh vehicles on routes where there are no weighbridges,” he said. “This means that anyone trying to escape weighbridges by opting for an alternative route will find it difficult to avoid the authorities. Trucks that pass over these screening mats and are found to be overloaded are escorted to routes with weighbridges where an official weight is then taken.”
The province has also purchased two mobile testing units to test truck breaks on the roadside.
“We believe this will go a long way to addressing roadworthiness of trucks on our roads,” he said.
