After the long trek to different holiday destinations over the Easter weekend, weary travellers made their way to their respective provinces. This period is usually marked by reckless driving, drunk driving and carnage on South African roads.
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According to Trans African Concessions (TRAC), despite the high traffic volumes on the roads this year, there were no fatalities recorded on the South African section of the N4 toll route this Easter.
A statement released by TRAC reads: “Twenty-nine accidents were recorded on the N4 from Thursday 18 April to Monday 22 April 2018, which is a huge decline from last year’s 73 crashes.”
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At least twenty accidents happened in South Africa, while Mozambique recorded nine. A single road death was reported on the Mozambican side.
“We convey our heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased.”
Traffic volumes increased considerably over the Easter weekend and TRAC documented about 2 450 cars passing the Middelburg Toll Plaza. Monday was also a very busy period at the Ressano Garcia and Lebombo border posts.
“Traffic flowed smoothly at the international crossing throughout the weekend,” the statement continued.
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TRAC attributes the drop in road fatalities to a number of safety initiatives which were instituted to lessen the response times to roadside emergencies and incidents.
“Another contributing factor was the high visibility of traffic and law enforcement authorities throughout the 570km route.”
The high law enforcement visibility along the N4 no doubt played a pivotal role in ensuring that motorists and other road users adhered to the rules of the road and contributed to the significant drop in road deaths.
“This achievement would not have been possible without road users’ cooperation and TRAC thanks all motorists for their efforts,” the statement concluded.
