Following thousands of complaints by motorists being unable to get new driving licence cards, the Department of Transport has finally admitted to the problem and has said employees have agreed to resume their duties pending the finalisation of the dispute at the bargaining council.
In October, the department rejected, with contempt, the false media reports that the driving licence card account had not produced any cards from August 1, and that there was a backlog of 450000 cards.
It further said at the time that it expected to complete the production of the July backlog by the end of the weekend of October 13 and 14.
The department now says there is still a backlog of 90000 cards which have not been printed for motorists who applied in July and August.
“These orders have been prioritised to be printed in the next three weeks. We are pleased to inform drivers that the affected employees have agreed to resume their duties pending the finalisation of the dispute,” transport spokesperson Ishmael Mnisi said.
As an interim measure, the department advises motorists to apply for a temporary driving licence card, which has a validity period of six months. This will ensure that motorists comply with traffic regulations, he said.
Mike Hawke from Randburg said he and his wife had applied for licence renewals on August 1 and were told to come back after six weeks, which they did, and subsequently every two weeks thereafter, but have still not received their cards.
James Murray of Alberton said he went to the Alrode testing station in Alberton on July 26 to renew his driving licence, well before his current one expired.
“I returned there several times, hoping to collect the new card. Instead, I was informed on all occasions that there were no cards because of a strike,” he said.
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