Unroadworthy Buses Entering Western Cape: MEC writes to Northern Cape Counterpart

Western Cape Community Safety MEC, Lennit Max today wrote to the Northern Cape MEC for Transport, Safety and Liaison, Patrick Mabilo, to address the seemingly slack law enforcement by that province's traffic officials which directly impacts on road safety in the Western Cape.

Western Cape traffic officials yesterday pulled over a privately owned KPL Tours bus outside Laingsburg and found it to be unroadworthy with no brakes at the back and only a wooden block where the leaf springs are supposed to be. (see photos attached). They also found that the bus was suspended in 2008 and that it was traveling without a licence which expired at the end of November last year. The driver was fined and the bus grounded.

It came to light that the bus was pulled over in De Aar in the Northern Cape two weeks ago. Traffic officers in De Aar found the bus to be unroadworthy and issued a suspension, even though it was already suspended, and then allowed the bus to travel to Cape Town instructing it to not exceed sixty (60 km) kilometres an hour.

"We are rigorously enforcing traffic laws in the Western Cape to keep dodgy bus operators and other irresponsible drivers off our roads. However, other provinces are clearly not doing the same and it needs to be addressed as their slack efforts can cost lives on their roads and ours, says Max.

Pictures the Unroadworthy Bus