Cape Town - Provincial and municipal traffic officers who recently graduated from the Gene Louw Traffic College will be deployed at various provincial traffic centres and municipalities across the province from Monday and Tuesday.
In launching the provincial Festive Season Road Safety Plan on Friday, mobility MEC Daylin Mitchell said the Western Cape was expecting a huge influx of motorists in and out of the province during this festive holiday season.
He commended the Directorate for Traffic Training and Development on their training achievements for the 2022 academic year and said the Gene Louw Traffic College had successfully trained 99 student provincial and municipal traffic officers who graduated on Friday.
“(They are) our brand-new boots on the ground, who will be deployed at various provincial traffic centres and municipalities across the province starting from Monday and Tuesday next week,” Mitchell said.
The new graduates will add to the workforce at various provincial traffic centres across the province, including in the Overstrand, Swartland and Stellenbosch municipalities.
“These new officers will be arriving at their centres, operationally ready, to further our objectives, with a strong focus on embracing technology.
“These officers have been through a demanding, year-long accredited training course to complete the required further education and training certificate: road traffic law enforcement course. I would like to personally congratulate all of you and thank you in advance for the sacrifices you will be making, saving lives and making our roads safer while others will be enjoying family time during the festive season,” Mitchell said.
Key operational focus areas for this season include alcohol enforcement, speed enforcement, driver and vehicle fitness, public transport, fatigue management and moving violation enforcement.
Meanwhile the City’s Traffic Service will again offer free vehicle checks for long distance public transport operators, under the auspices of Operation Exodus.
Public transport operators can take their vehicles to the Joe Gqabi Driving Licence Testing Centre and Bellville Traffic Department from Monday until December 23.
The City said qualified vehicle examiners will check roadworthiness and advise the operator what repairs are required, if any.
“This is not a roadworthy certification, but merely a safety check to ensure passengers get to their destination safely. Drivers will not be penalised either for any defects that might be detected. The intention is to guide them on the path to compliance, peace of mind and the safety of their passengers,” safety and security mayco member JP Smith said.
“Recently, our Traffic Service impounded two buses that were heading to Zimbabwe. These vehicles were in no condition to take on such a long journey, and the owners put the lives of the dozens of people looking to get home for the holidays at risk.
“Too often, the holiday season is marred by road accidents with multiple casualties because of driver or vehicle fitness,” Smith said.
In addition to the free vehicle checks, vehicle checkpoints will be set up around public transport interchanges to check outbound taxis and buses.
Closer to home, the City’s enforcement agencies will also conduct roadblocks and vehicle checks to ensure the safety of the motoring public at large.
Cape Times