Appeal to keep SA children safe on the roads during Easter holiday

ChildSafe South Africa and the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) has appealed for heightened road safety vigilance during the upcoming Easter holiday period.

According to the RTMC, children between the age of five up to 19 years make up 7.2 percent of people who died on the roads during last year’s Easter period.

RTMC spokesperson Simon Zwane says road safety must remain all road users’ primary focus.

“Research into road trauma consistently highlights that correct use of child restraints is the most effective intervention in road safety. We therefore urge parents to ensure that the children are appropriately restrained when traveling during this Easter period.”

Meanwhile, traffic officers had to deal with two incidents of lawlessness in Khayelitsha on the Cape Flats Friday morning, in the same vicinity where the Western Cape Mobility Department was launching its Easter Road Safety Plan.

Provincial Traffic Chief Maxine Bezuidenhout says two drivers were apprehended for their brazen behaviour.

“Already at the launch this morning in Spine Road, a driver was arrested for drinking and driving after blowing more than twice the legal limit. In a separate incident, a 17-year-old taxi driver collided with a road sign, fled the scene and was swiftly apprehended by officials.”