The Limpopo Department of Roads and Transport is bracing itself for high traffic volumes leading into the province as the annual September ZCC Moria pilgrimage starts. Hundreds of busses, mini-busses, and small cars transporting millions of the ZCC members will travel into the province leading to Moria rendering our roads highly congested. During this Moria September campaign the Department has, however, planned for a smooth passage into the province free of traffic disruptions.
The campaign will be staged on the weekend of 31 August to 02 September as well as 21 to 24 September 2012 when an intensive law enforcement plan will mobilise the province’s 1042 provincial traffic officers. The department will further deploy 33 road safety officials to maximise communications and publicity on enforcement issues aimed at road user behaviour and to encourage voluntary compliance.
The plan will focus on harzardous locations and the omnipresence of traffic official who will be deployed on a 24/7shift basis. Special focus on our planning has been placed around the indentified top five priority routes during the expected days of higher traffic volume.
- N1 – Carousel to Polokwane
- R37 - Lebowakgomo road
- R71- Polokwane to Tzaneen and the church entrances
- R101 Polokwane to Belabela
- R36 Tzaneen to Lydenburg
The alcohol evidence centre in Polokwane will be utilised to the fullest, operating on a 24 hour basis. It must be noted that, out of 515 accidents on our roads reported from April to June 2012, 13 were caused by drivers under the influence of alcohol. We will continue our efforts to rid our roads of drunken drivers. Our efforts have already seen 107 arrested for drunken driving for the period April to July 2012. In this campaign we will focus again on visible policing where we will deploy 418 marked and unmarked traffic police and road safety vehicles on 26 identified critical roads daily.
The visible policing effort will focus on moving violations i.e reckless and negligent driving. The department will deploy six speed units on the N1 every day during this period while additional 17 speed units will also be deployed in all districts. In this regard the focus will include speeding, driver’s licenses and drunk driving. We will further conduct daily joint special operations with SAPS at Beit Bridge and Groblersbrug Border posts. The operation will start from 31 August 2012, focusing on traffic congestion, overloading and transport related crime.
The department’s eight traffic control centres will focus on passenger carrying vehicles to ensure compliance with road worthiness and passenger carrying capacity. Traffic Police officials will also focus on trailer transport. Trailers and vehicles found not roadworthy will be discontinued at the entrances to the province at Beit bridge, Mantsole, Groblersbrug and Rathoge Traffic control centres.
Frequent travellers to the Province are advised to avoid travelling during peak hours on the N1 and R101 on these days.
- Friday, 31 August: 17h00 to 06h00
- Sunday, 2 September: 12h00 to 02h00
- Friday, 21 September: 17h00 to 06h00
- Sunday, 23 September: 14h00 to 06h00
- Monday, 24 September: 14h00 to 20h00
The MEC responsible for Roads and Transport, Pitsi Moloto has called on all road users to exercise patience, refrain from speeding, drinking and driving and obey all the rules of the road. Moloto emphasised that it is through behavioural change by all road users that road accidents can be avoided. “One death is one death too many, we do not wish to report a single death during this period and we are urging on all road users to arrive alive,” said Moloto.
For further enquiry please contact:
Joshua Kwapa, Roads and Transport Spokesperson
Tel: 015 295 1224
Cell: 079 185 7598
