It was part of the Cape Town traffic service’s intensified roadblocks, vehicle checkpoints and speed control operations, which recorded 40,701 speeding offences and issued 26,850 fines for various traffic violations. In addition, 339 vehicles were impounded and 1,934 warrants of arrest were executed.
Traffic officers made 71 arrests for offences which included drunk driving, reckless and negligent driving, and various other offences including assaulting an officer.
The action followed the recent violent Cape Town taxi strike which claimed five lives and left business in the city hugely affected. The protest by the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) lasted about eight days and saw busses burnt, hundreds of thousands unable to get to work, and schools and clinics closed.
The protest was against the city impounding taxis for what Santaco deemed to be minor infractions. It ended after the city and the taxi industry reached an agreement which included the release of the impounded vehicles.
Last weekend the City of Cape Town’s public emergency communication centre (PECC) received 76 calls about motor vehicle accidents and 18 pedestrian-related accidents.
“It has become par for the course that with inclement weather, there is an increased recklessness on our roads,” said the city’s mayoral committee member for safety and security, alderman JP Smith.
“Drivers fail to take into account the bad weather and don’t adjust their driving behaviour accordingly. Instead of switching on their lights, slowing down or increasing their following distances, they seem to do the opposite.
“Add to that a number of drivers under the influence and you have a recipe for disaster. Alcohol, negligent driving and wet road conditions result in accidents or fender benders which could have been avoided. It may be spring, but that doesn’t mean the rainy days are over. Motorists should be extra cautious whenever weather conditions deteriorate.”
Cape Town taxi driver arrested for owing nearly R180,000 in traffic fines
The minibus driver had 59 outstanding traffic fines and was jailed after being unable to pay them
Image: Reuters
A minibus taxi driver has been arrested in Cape Town with 59 outstanding traffic fines valued at R178,900.
On Saturday, September 2, officers stopped the suspect in Kuils River and found he was in the Top 100 list in terms of outstanding warrants. The driver tried to flee on foot through the canal and into vegetation, but officers chased and arrested him.
He was unable to pay the fines and was sentenced to three months in prison in the Parow court. This related to the 41 warrants he had outstanding at the Parow court, and he has another 18 outstanding warrants at another court.
Roadblock etiquette — know your rights when stopped
It was part of the Cape Town traffic service’s intensified roadblocks, vehicle checkpoints and speed control operations, which recorded 40,701 speeding offences and issued 26,850 fines for various traffic violations. In addition, 339 vehicles were impounded and 1,934 warrants of arrest were executed.
Traffic officers made 71 arrests for offences which included drunk driving, reckless and negligent driving, and various other offences including assaulting an officer.
The action followed the recent violent Cape Town taxi strike which claimed five lives and left business in the city hugely affected. The protest by the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) lasted about eight days and saw busses burnt, hundreds of thousands unable to get to work, and schools and clinics closed.
The protest was against the city impounding taxis for what Santaco deemed to be minor infractions. It ended after the city and the taxi industry reached an agreement which included the release of the impounded vehicles.
Last weekend the City of Cape Town’s public emergency communication centre (PECC) received 76 calls about motor vehicle accidents and 18 pedestrian-related accidents.
“It has become par for the course that with inclement weather, there is an increased recklessness on our roads,” said the city’s mayoral committee member for safety and security, alderman JP Smith.
“Drivers fail to take into account the bad weather and don’t adjust their driving behaviour accordingly. Instead of switching on their lights, slowing down or increasing their following distances, they seem to do the opposite.
“Add to that a number of drivers under the influence and you have a recipe for disaster. Alcohol, negligent driving and wet road conditions result in accidents or fender benders which could have been avoided. It may be spring, but that doesn’t mean the rainy days are over. Motorists should be extra cautious whenever weather conditions deteriorate.”
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