A few years ago, traffic officers set up a speed camera on the N4 one Sunday morning and waited…

…and waited…

…and waited…

It’s almost like fishing.

The bait was thrown out, but there was no bite.

Nothing!

Not a single speeding devil.

The traffic officers suspected something was wrong because Sundays are always a good day for catching speedsters.

Steve Buys was caught in the eighties driving his Porsche at 244 kilometres per hour near the Middelburg Toll Plaza, on a Sunday afternoon.

He later appeared in the magistrate’s court and after his case was concluded, he posed with a broad smile with traffic officer Henk le Roux in front of his flashy Porsche.

Later, Theo Mabuza (31) was also arrested on the N4 after allegedly driving his Porsche at 256 kilometres per hour.

The traffic officers who sat and waited in amazement that Sunday without issuing a single speeding ticket went to investigate.

A few kilometres before the speed trap, someone put up a cardboard sign for all motorists to see: “Beware speed trap ahead”.

Now the town is in uproar over traffic cameras that are everywhere watching them.

There was a heated debate about whether it would be illegal to warn other motorists.

Lawyer Gerrit Kruger says it is indeed illegal and amounts to “defeating the ends of justice”.

This did not stop residents from indicating where the speed cameras were:

• Meyer Street opposite the Middelburg Observer.
• Lillian Ngoyi Street opposite the fire department.
• Walter Sisulu Street on the Loskopdam Road.
• Samora Machel Street opposite the golf driving range.
• John Magagula Street at the circle near Middelburg Primary.
• N11 at Columbus.

Mr. Kruger says he fully supports the Steve Tshwete Municipality’s efforts to catch people who behave so disorderly.

“Why all the fuss about the cameras, why don’t people just drive within the speed limit?”

He says the camera law enforcement should be extended to traffic lights and stop signs.

He confirmed what residents experience daily, motorists no longer stop at red traffic lights or stop signs and put innocent people’s lives at risk.

The Middelburg Observer has reliably learned that a speeding driver has already been caught doing 134 kilometres per hour in a 60 zone