×

We've got news for you.

Register on SowetanLIVE at no cost to receive newsletters, read exclusive articles & more.
Register now
South Africa

N3 Toll Concession is going the extra mile to enhance road safety

The 'Decade of Action for Road Safety' aims to cut down on road deaths by improving the safety of our roads

Police and traffic officers check cars and taxis on the N3 near Heidelberg during an operation.
Police and traffic officers check cars and taxis on the N3 near Heidelberg during an operation.

The global plan for the "Decade of Action for Road Safety" as part of the UN’s Road Safety Collaboration provides a clear framework and guidelines to improve road safety with the aim of stabilising and reducing road fatalities.

Governments, international agencies, the private sector and civil-society stakeholder groups support this global plan of which SA is a signatory, and so too is the N3 Toll Concession (N3TC), the company which maintains and operates one of the country’s major transport links.

Since inception N3TC has instituted various road-safety interventions and deploys extensive resources to enhance safety along the N3 toll route (from Heidelberg in Gauteng to Cedara in KwaZulu-Natal).

"We continuously improve road signage and markings, do speed-over-distance monitoring, enhance our road-incident management capacity through training, and deploy highly specialised personnel and emergency-response vehicles," says Miles le Roux, N3TC’s transport engineer.

All incidents along the N3 toll route are managed from N3TC’s route-control centre (RCC) based at the Bergview Complex near Harrismith. Emergency roadside assistance, as well as traffic and route updates, are provided from the RCC. 

"Every day, the route control centre diligently manages the very important N3 incident database which is currently the only database of its kind in SA. It enables us to identify hot spots along the route and gives a better understanding of the type of incidents, and how to manage and mitigate these. This information goes a long way to inform our decisions when obtaining and deploying our resources to ensure overall improved road safety,” says Le Roux.

N3TC road-safety initiatives

"We combine our efforts with various partners in road safety and law enforcement to enhance our emergency capacity and to ensure that road users have the best possible experience," says Con Roux, commercial manager of N3TC.

Visible law enforcement, 24-hour emergency assistance and general road-user assistance can be expected from N3TC and its partners. The following measures have been put in place:

  • Regular route patrols by the N3TC patrol teams to ensure that roads are free of any hazards;
  • Ongoing monitoring of traffic conditions and advance warning of any prevailing conditions which may affect route safety or cause delays;
  • Strict law enforcement along the entire route and traffic checkpoints on key dates;
  • Random checks for roadworthiness of vehicles;
  • Random testing of drivers who may be under the influence of alcohol, drugs or other substances;
  • Enforcement of public transport compliance;
  • Medical services with intermediate and/or advanced life-support units who will be stationed at strategic points along the route;
  • Medical rescue units, air ambulances, disaster and rescue teams will be on standby; and
  • Humanitarian groups will be available to assist at major crashes and provide post-crash care support to victims.

Get advance traffic information or report roadside emergencies

Before departure, motorists are advised to obtain the latest road and traffic information from N3TC's 24-hour emergency helpline: 080-063-4357 (0800 N3 HELP) or on Twitter.

Should it be required, emergency assistance will be dispatched to you anywhere along the N3 Toll Route.

N3TC wishes you a safe and peaceful holiday.

Watch the video

This article was paid for by N3 Toll Concession.

Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.

Speech Bubbles

Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.