Publication of the National Road Traffic Regulations for Comments

The Minister of Transport intends to amend the National Road Traffic Regulations, 2000, and acting in terms of section 75 (6) of the National Road Traffic Act, 1996 (Act No. 93 of 1996) published the proposed for comments. (REGULATIONS)

Here is my comments on this proposed amendments:

Input/comments on Publication of the National Road Traffic Regulations for Comments

Input/comments on proposed regulation 107D

Unfortunately the motivation/reasoning for this proposed regulation is not known, but my guess is that the current system of issuing driving licence cards are either a total flop as it does not ensure that persons tested for first time licences are equal to the task to drive a motor vehicle, or it is marred with bribery or forgery allowing people to drive vehicles without legally obtained licenses.

The reason for my guess is that why should a person who has his license for 20 or 30 years and never made an accident in these many years of driving now be punished to be re-examined every five years for his license? Or, is this just another money-making scheme to milk the public once again to fill the coffers of the local municipalities? Two months ago I had to pay R280.00 just for the new re-issued card. What will this ‘additional’ burden cost the public now?

The solution does not lay with punishing law-abiding citizens by over-regulating them because a person who did not obtain his license lawfully will use the same unlawful avenues to by-pass this over-regulating proposed regulation too – just think back to the gun-laws aiming to curb unlawful/unregistered fire-arms. What happened? It is still a gangsters’ paradise for illegal fire-arm bearers because I do not know of one armed robber who went or failed his fire-arm license test/examination or who handed in his illegal fire-arms!

Therefore, do not address the symptoms but address the cause of illegal drivers’ licenses or incompetent drivers by cleaning up/renovating the current system of testing drivers/issuing licenses.

Input/comments on the amended regulation 292

As with my input/comments on the proposed regulation 107D, the same principles are applicable here. Why in heavens name decrease the speed limit if drivers are not even adhering to the current speed limits. The Minister of Transport must please visit Nigel (Gauteng) for a week from Monday to Sunday to observe how people (not citizens with drivers’ licenses from 20 and more years on but youngsters with or without licenses as young as 14 years) who make a mockery of the speed limit in town and the road traffic rules and signs and terrorizing law-abiding citizens. And the reason? There is no road traffic law-enforcing in town! So, once again, do not treat the symptom, but address the cause by ensuring law-enforcement to the letter of the act! (And with law-enforcement I do not mean bribing traffic officers!) PS: unlawfulness regarding road traffic regulations or rules are not only endemic to Nigel but to every road or street in South Africa. The past weekend I went to Pretoria and back via the N17, N3 and N1. What a nightmare as drivers with the super-rich vehicles speed pass you at breathtaking speeds!

Thank you.

Daniel de Villiers

18 May 2015.