OPINION: Crash after crash – When will Pinehaven be made safer?

• Michelle van Wyk, Digital Content Creator (DCC) for Caxton Joburg West writes:

After yet another crash at the infamous Pinehaven intersection on the R28, we once again have to ask: What is going to be done?

According to towing responder Paul Viljoen, four cars and a truck were involved in the latest crash, which occurred at about 16:45 on Monday. At the time of publication, Krugersdorp News journalist Heinrich Greyling confirmed that at least two people had sustained injuries, although the extent of their injuries was not yet known.

• Also read: Late-afternoon crash at notorious Pinehaven intersection causes delays

With every new collision, the toll continues to rise, adding to the many lives already lost and the countless people injured at what has become one of the West Rand’s most dangerous intersections.

How many more lives must be lost? How many more families must lose a loved one before meaningful action is taken? Every person who has died at this intersection was someone’s mother, father, wife, husband, child or friend.

Some of those who lost their lives were young; others were old. Regardless of their age, every life mattered, and still does.

• Also read: 20 injured at Pinehaven intersection crash

Too often, reckless driving appears to play a role. Whether it is someone driving like a Formula One driver to prove a point or speeding because they left home late and are trying to get to work on time, the consequences can be devastating.

These crashes seem to occur most frequently during the early mornings and late afternoons, when traffic volumes are at their highest.

Then there are the trucks descending the mountain at speed, sometimes outside their designated lane. While there are occasions where brake failure may be to blame and beyond the driver’s control, this cannot explain every incident.

The News has been reporting on crashes at this intersection for almost a decade, if not longer.

One incident that still stands out to me is the tragic crash in the early hours of October 7, 2022, in which two young men, Arno van Loggenberg and his friend Nevin Jacobs, lost their lives when a truck collided with their yellow Volkswagen Beetle. I was the journalist on the scene that morning. It is something you never want to witness, nor something you would wish anyone else to experience.

• Also read: Arno sterf dae ná gru-ongeluk in Pinehaven

That day changed the way I view this intersection. Even now, I avoid driving on what many have come to call the ‘road of death’.

But the question remains: What is going to be done? What happened to the proposed flyover that was discussed more than a decade ago as a solution to improve safety?

• Also read: Rus sag Nevin Jacobs – Pinehaven vragmotorongeluk slagoffer

Many of the crashes involve trucks and passenger vehicles. At what point will trucking companies also be held accountable for ensuring that their vehicles are properly maintained, roadworthy and safe to operate?

It must be heartbreaking for families who have already lost loved ones at this intersection to know that serious crashes continue to occur, claiming even more lives.

Earlier this year alone, there were almost six crashes at the intersection within a single week.

• Also read: Over 30 vehicles involved in major R28 crash

What is causing this? Is it poor visibility, excessive speeding, inadequate signage, confusing lane markings or faulty traffic signals?

Whatever the underlying causes may be, the relevant road authorities and municipality should conduct a thorough investigation and begin implementing meaningful safety improvements.

There is no justification for more lives to be lost or for more families to endure the pain of losing someone at this intersection.

The above is an opinion piece and falls under Protected Comment in the Press Code of South Africa, which states:

7.1 The media shall be entitled to comment upon or criticise any actions or events of public interest; and
7.2 Comment or criticism is protected even if it is extreme, unjust, unbalanced, exaggerated and prejudiced, as long as it is without malice, is on a matter of public interest, has taken fair account of all material facts that are either true or reasonably true, and is presented in a manner that it appears clearly to be comment.