The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport says more than 3,400 law enforcement officers will be deployed across the province
Image: FILE/ KZN Transport
The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport says more than 3,400 law enforcement officers will be deployed across the province as part of a heightened road safety campaign for the Easter and Passover long weekend.
MEC for Transport Siboniso Duma said the operation will include intensified roadblocks, vehicle inspections and 24-hour patrols aimed at curbing drunk driving, speeding and unroadworthy vehicles.
He said no-nonsense teams from Operation Shanela and the Road Traffic Inspectorate have already started with vehicle inspections, impounding non-compliant vehicles during early operations.
"A multi-disciplinary roadblock executed in KwaMashu, jointly with SAPS, eThekwini Metro Police and other key stakeholders, has set the tone for the weeks ahead," Duma said
"Importantly, the newly appointed head of the department, Zibusiso Dlamini, is leading a team that will intensify the #NenzaniLaEzweni in our 17 provincial weighbridge sites. The most vehicles weighed at a single weighbridge were 40,441 vehicles at the Midway weighbridge, with an average of 3,370 vehicles weighed per month".
He said the department also wants to "introduce Artificial Intelligence in order to automate the weighing process, improve accuracy, and prevent fraud through features like automated number plate recognition, real-time data analytics, and anomaly detection".
"As a department, we have set ourselves a target of achieving a 10% decrease in road fatalities this Easter holiday and Passover long weekend. During Easter 2025, we recorded a 38% decrease in the number of fatalities compared to the 43% we recorded in 2024".
The operation will run 24 hours a day until 3 May 2026 and will include 148 roadblocks, with more than 80 focused on drunk driving, as well as over 118 speed enforcement operations in high-risk areas.
"Critically, for the first time, through 28 pedestrian enforcement operations, we will clamp down against drunk pedestrians who will be walking on busy roads. We will also penalise pedestrians who fail to use pedestrian bridges on various routes".
mthobisi.nozulela@iol.co.za
IOL Business