Sekhukhune hosts Arrive Alive campaign
Traffic officials of the department of roads and transport, members of the SAPS, Emergency Medical Services (EMS), community policing forums (CPFs), the disaster management office and public transport operators partnered with the Sekhukhune District Municipality (SDM) in ensuring Limpopo was safe during the Easter weekend.
BURGERSFORT- Traffic officials of the department of roads and transport, members of the SAPS, Emergency Medical Services (EMS), community policing forums (CPFs), the disaster management office and public transport operators partnered with the Sekhukhune District Municipality (SDM) in ensuring Limpopo was safe during the Easter weekend.
Just before the long weekend commenced, the above-mentioned stakeholders embarked on an Easter Arrive Alive campaign called operation Thibela Kotsi to alert road users about the dangers they might encounter on the roads.
The campaign was held at the Tubatse Crossing mall on April 17, it started with roadblocks on the R37 and ended with the address by various stakeholders that included the acting executive mayor of SDM on the day, Cllr Rose Mokoka.
“The department’s fundamental resolve of reducing carnage on our roads will be on full display this Easter weekend. As the department we will adopt a zero-tolerance approach in ensuring that all road users obey all traffic regulations,” explained Mr Victor Lekwadu, chief traffic officer at Greater Tubatse Municipality (GTM).
He warned road users to violate traffic rules at their own peril as they would face the consequences.
He added,” For the department, one life lost is one life too many. However; our planned, stringent and focused operations are aimed at further reducing carnage on our roads.”
This year’s Easter Arrive Alive campaign focused on road safety management, safer roads, vehicle safety, safer road users and post-crash response. According to Lekwadu, the province dealt with a massive influx of vehicles en route to the Moria City over the holidays. About a million pilgrims attended this annual Easter church service.
According to the traffic officials, the increased traffic volumes posed the following challenges; an increased number of buses which lead to congestion and delays at toll plazas and border gates; overloading of public passenger transport; pedestrian jaywalking; breaking down of vehicles and trailers; reckless and negligent driving; and drunken driving and over speeding.
The department deployed more than 353 marked and 38 unmarked traffic-police and road-safety vehicles on identified critical routes. The visible policing operations focused on moving violations such as reckless and negligent driving.
Special focus was placed on the top-five priority routes namely the N1 Mantsole to Musina, R521 Dendron Road, R71 Polokwane/Tzaneen Road, R101 Polokwane/BelaBela and the R36 Tzaneen/Lydenburg Road from April 28 to 22. The paper had not received the exact Easter death toll on Limpopo’s roads before going to print.
