Nine killed on Western Cape roads over the weekend

A preliminary report from the Western Cape Department of Health’s Forensic Pathology Services indicates that nine road users died on the province’s roads over the weekend.

Western Cape Provincial Traffic Services arrested 35 motorists for allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol on 13 and 14 May 2016. Six other arrests were made:

• two in connection with impoundments in the George service area,
• one in connection with false documentation in the Vredenburg service area, and
• three for excessive speed in the Beaufort West service area (169 km/h in a 120 km/h zone in the first case, 168 km/h zone in a 120 km/h zone in the second case, and 163 km/h in a 120 km/h zone in the third case).

Breath testing was performed on 1 954 drivers at 26 alcohol blitz roadblocks across the province. The highest breath alcohol reading was recorded in the Worcester service area. At 1,20 mg of alcohol/ 1 000 ml of breath, this is five times the legal limit of 0,24 mg/ 1 000 ml.

A total of 12 513 vehicles were screened for speeding and 1 458 speeding offences were recorded. Fines in the amount of R317 200 were issued for a variety of reasons ranging from driver offences to vehicle fitness violations.

The highest speeds recorded were:

• 202 km/h in a 120 km/h zone on the N1 in the Brackenfell service area, 
• 149 km/h in a 100 km/h zone in the Worcester service area, and
• 115 km/h in an 80 km/h zone on the N2 in the Knysna service area.

Details of the road fatalities over the weekend follow:

This is an appeal from the Department of Transport and Public Works: never use your cell phone while driving. Distracted driving can be fatal. As the United States National Road Safety Council points out, the ability of a person’s brain to process moving images decreases by 33% when he or she is on the phone. Drivers cannot respond quickly to what is happening on the road when they are distracted. This is true even if they are using a hands-free apparatus. Road crashes can result in serious injuries and death. No phone call or text message is so important that it is worth a human life.

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