Transport Month: Western Cape traffic officers striving for less tragedy on the roads

October is marked as Transport Month in South Africa. The month is used to raise awareness on the important role of transport in the economy and to encourage participation from civil society and business, including the provision of a safe and affordable, accessible and reliable transport system in the country.

Daylin Mitchell, Western Cape Mobility MEC joined Provincial Traffic Officers during an integrated road operation in the West Coast to officially launch Transport Month.

He said that no one should be killed or injured on our roads.“We have to work around the clock, provide structured traffic law enforcement and road safety interventions to influence road users positively, with a view to demonstrating improved behaviour while using our road network to commute within and beyond the Western Cape.

Our primary focus this month is the maintenance and the regulation of safe and responsible road user behaviour, with an added focus on pedestrian behaviour “, said Mitchell.

Meanwhile Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula hailed the government during the October Transport Month launch in Pretoria, for the recovery of yet another commuter rail corridor.

This was in line with their commitment to return to service this year 10 priority corridors. Mbalula said that government was closely monitoring progress at Prasa.

He also said the department recently signed a social compact with all the parties that are involved and affected by the situation on the central line, outlining the roles and responsibilities of each party.

Mbalula said their work with provinces and municipalities to improve the service offering at Driving Licence Testing Centres (DLTCs) was beginning to bear fruit with motorists spending less time in queues.

Mitchell, will continue to support traffic officers as they continue to execute multiple joint integrated operations and visibility strategies throughout the province to ensure the safety of motorists and other road users.

 By Everngelista Muza