New traffic laws to curb unroadworthy vehicles on roads in the Western Cape will soon be implemented. It is reported that the laws will be drafted by mid-February.
Speaking in an interview with 702, MEC for Transport Donald Grant said that the drafted laws will have wider powers and harsher consequences than the current traffic laws.
The first Traffic Amendment Bill dealt with three key factors:
– Safety of cyclists
– Blue lights
– Impoundment of taxis without operating licences.
“So now it is time to make sure that it is widened to be more effective so that it deals with impoundments not only of taxis but of all vehicles travelling on our roads,” Grant said.
This will allow not only for taxis to be impounded, but vehicles such as sedans as well. Grant’s department will also be lobbying the Justice Cluster to enforce greater consequences for drivers who speed.
“At the moment we are arresting people going at 151km per hour in a 120km per hour zone then we have powers of arrest and to take them to court for prosecution. The Justice Cluster sets the bar on consequences, we’ve got to lobby them for far greater sentencing for motorists that endanger the lives of others,” he said.
Cape Town’s speeding problems were shown to be undeniable earlier this week, when a video of a devastating high-speed crash on the N1 highway went viral.
The City of Cape Town confirmed that the incident occurred just after midnight on the morning of Monday January 21 and that the driver of the vehicle was seriously injured.
“The incident is just the latest example of the devastation wrought by illegal street racers on our streets,” the City said in a statement. “What is equally concerning is the group of people gathered on the overpass who were filming the incident.”
Picture: Pixabay