City of Tshwane vows to reduce Easter weekend road fatalities by up to 15%

The City of Tshwane and the Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) have vowed to reduce road fatalities by up to 15% this Easter weekend.

Tshwane Metro Police in conjunction with the South African Police Service (SAPS) are manning a joint roadblock on the N1 north freeway linking Limpopo and Gauteng near Hammanskraal, north of Pretoria.

The City believes for the operation to meet the intended purpose of decreasing road crashes and fatalities, it needs the cooperation of all road users.

Tshwane Mayor Randall Williams who is leading the operation says, “Over the last Easter weekend, we had 222 road accidents which resulted in 270 fatalities. So, we want to make sure that not only accidents but also fatalities come down – as those fatalities also involved pedestrians on the highway. We can educate people to cross pedestrian bridges and walk a bit further [from the highway] and don’t just run across the highway.”

The video below is reporting on Easter Holiday traffic:

High police visibility

Meanwhile, Limpopo’s Transport authorities say there will be high visibility of law enforcers on the roads as they brace for traffic volumes during the Easter long weekend.

MEC Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya has warned motorists not to speed and that they will also conduct roadworthiness tests on vehicles on the roadside. Traffic authorities had manned a roadblock on the N1 north at Kranskop toll plaza.

Motorists driving vehicles that are not roadworthy have been slapped with traffic fines.

VIDEO: SABC News reporter Katlego Nyoni is at the Kranskop Toll Gate in Limpopo: