A preliminary report from the Western Cape Department of Health’s Forensic Pathology Services indicates that five road users died on the province’s roads over the weekend.
Western Cape Provincial Traffic Services arrested 21 motorists for allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol on 20 and 21 May 2016.
Five other arrests were made:
Breath testing was performed on 1 842 drivers at 26 alcohol blitz roadblocks across the province. The highest breath alcohol reading was recorded in the Worcester service area. At 1.01 mg of alcohol/ 1 000 ml of breath, this is four times the legal limit of 0.24 mg/ 1 000 ml.
A total of 3 118 vehicles were screened for speeding and 804 speeding offences were recorded. Fines in the amount of R265 850 were issued for a variety of reasons ranging from driver offences to vehicle fitness violations.
The highest speeds recorded were:
Details of the road fatalities over the weekend follow:
Date | Location of crash | Fatalities |
Friday, 20 May 2016 | Villiersdorp | 2 pedestrians |
Friday, 20 May 2016 | Somerset West | 1 pedestrian |
Sunday, 22 May 2016 | Sir Lowry’s Pass | 1 cyclist |
Sunday, 22 May 2016 | Joostenberg Vlakte | 1 pedestrian |
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.
Follow Safely Home on Twitter @WCGovSafelyHome under the hashtag #ItCanWait.
Kenny Africa
Provincial Traffic Chief
Department of Transport and Public Works
Tel: 021 483 5114/ 7823
Cell: 084 562 4574
Email: Kenneth.Africa@westerncape.gov.za
You can follow the Department of Transport and Public Works on Twitter: @WCGovTPW