Newly released statistics from the Department of Transport have revealed that 1666 people tragically lost their lives on the roads in 2018, with the most accidents and lives lost recorded in the O R Tambo district.
In response to a parliamentary question Transport MEC, Weziwe Tikana, has now confirmed that 1666 lives were lost in 1320 crashes involving 1614 vehicles during 2018.
That’s more than four lives every day, lost in vehicle accidents on the province’s roads!
The O. R. Tambo region had the highest fatalities, 376, from 302 crashes, involving 358 vehicles. The Amathole region followed with 234 fatalities from 187 crashes involving 231 vehicles.
The Joe Gqabi district had the lowest number of fatalities, with 102 lives lost in 79 crashes, involving 92 vehicles.
[See: IQP 4 response 107]
MEC Tikana says they are workshopping hazardous locations in the province with municipalities, with the intention of setting up strategy to address the issue.
This is simply unacceptable! Where is the 24-hour law enforcement that we were promised during the MEC’s budget speech last year?
MEC Tikana has since admitted that the roll out of this service has been delayed and is now expected to be implemented sometime over the next three years.
Three years is simply not good enough. People are dying on our roads daily and more needs to be done now!
The DA repeats its call to MEC Tikana for the immediate implementation of 24-hour traffic law enforcement on Eastern Cape roads.