Extended renewal hours for ‘sluggish’ Tshwane motorists
"Trends show that the majority of motorists wait until the last minute to renew their driving licences."
The Tshwane metro has extended its operating hours for driving licence testing centres to accommodate driving licence renewals after challenges were noted in addressing the renewal backlog.
Tshwane driving licence testing centres (DLTCs) extended their operating hours until Thursday, April 14, 2022, and offices are set to open from 08:00 to 18:00 on weekdays and from 08:00 to 16:00 on Saturday.
The extended operating hours apply to the following centres:
– Akasia
– Bronkhorstspruit
– Centurion
– Rayton
– Waltloo
MMC for Roads and Transport Dikeledi Selowa said the operating hours were extended after transport minister Fikile Mbalula announced a further extension of the grace period for driving licences that had expired due to delays caused by the Covid-19 restrictions and regulations.
“The extension of the grace period means that all learner’s licences, driving licence cards, temporary driving licences and professional driving permits that expired between March 26, 2020, and March 31, 2022, are valid until April 15, 2022.”
Selowa said the metro’s extension of operating hours aimed to reduce the backlog, especially due to the expected increase in travel during the Easter period.
She said Tshwane’s roads and transport department called on all residents to visit the identified centres after obtaining an appointment via the online eNaTIS booking system online.natis.gov.za.
“The department also urges everyone to bring an optometrist certificate to avoid spending a long time waiting for the eye-testing process.”
Mbalula said 24 000 booking slots were not taken up in March.
“We call upon motorists to come forward and renew their driving licences to avoid penalties on the road.”
He said on March 28, 2022, the transport department had produced 628 150 driving licence cards, reducing the backlog of cards to be printed, to 522 839.
“This is in respect of those who have already applied to renew their licences,” he said.
He said eligible motorists due for renewal applications stood at 1 424 756 motorists.
“This is a reduction of 2 813 016. This means that only 49% of the affected motorists have applied for renewal of their expired driving licences.”
“We are concerned that the pace of renewal in the provinces remains sluggish.”
In Gauteng, out of the 989 058 expired licences, 502 041 driving licences had been renewed, “representing 50.8% renewal”.
He said five provinces remained below 50%, namely the Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga and Limpopo.
“Disaster regulations falling away poses new challenges in terms of how far we can extend any grace period.”
Mbalula urged all those who had yet to renew their driving licences not to delay any further and take advantage of the additional capacity provided and the online services.
“Those who apply for their cards’ renewal before the expiry date can use the expired card for three months, provided that they have in their possession the expired card and the receipt [of renewal] in the vehicle at all times. This is a provision that is contained in our national road traffic regulations.”
He said the department acknowledged that the biggest challenge facing its centres was the capacity to cope with the last-minute influx of motorists renewing their licences.
“Trends show that the majority of motorists wait until the last minute to renew their driving licences. This places the DLTCs under severe pressure.”
Mbalula said further that the Road Traffic Management Co-operation was commissioned to research possible changes to the renewal time frames.
“Various countries in the continent have renewal periods that range from two to five years and several countries require renewal at anything from six to 15 years, while others have integrated the driving licence into their identity cards.
“The research will look at the correlation between the renewal period and safety on our roads and what factors should be taken into account if we are to revise the current five-year validity period.
“This work is already underway and will be concluded by April 30.”
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