4 school children die daily in accidents: Outcry over road carnage

The Road Accident Fund (RAF) has raised alarm over the devastating toll of road accidents involving school kids, revealing that approximately four children die every day due to road incidents.

“The five-year average for road fatalities among school-going children aged 5 to 19 in South Africa is 1 288. This is proof that road users are not doing enough to save children’s lives,” the fund said.

The staggering number of deaths translates to more than 100 deaths each month.

Pedestrians most at risk of road accidents

Analysis of the fatalities reveals a disturbing pattern, where 60% of child victims were pedestrians, while 36% were passengers.

Child cyclists and drivers each accounted for 2% of the deaths.

This concerning trend highlights the particular vulnerability of children walking on South African roads.

RAF Chief Executive Officer Collins Letsoalo emphasised the critical need for change.

“South African road users must stay alert. Your actions can profoundly impact human lives, particularly those of our future leaders.

“Let us be a nation that is moved by the loss of human lives and injuries caused by motor vehicle accidents. After all, 88% of all road crashes are due to human factors,” said Letsoalo.

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Discovery Insure CEO Robert Attwell noted the country’s road safety crisis in the global context.

Attwell pointed out that South Africa’s road fatality rate of 24.5 deaths per 100,000 people exceeds the combined rates of Australia, India, and Canada.

He emphasised that the situation is particularly dire for young people, with children under 14 accounting for more than 10% of road deaths in 2023.

Driver behaviour: The core issue of road accidents

According to the Road Traffic Management System (RTMS), 62% of motor vehicle fatalities stem from driver behaviour, while only 8.5% relate to vehicle factors.

The insurance advised parents and guardians to teach their children the correct and courteous way of using the country’s roads.

It added that all pedestrians should be “on the lookout for reckless drivers to avoid fatalities
attributable to these kinds of actions”.

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While pedestrians may be cautious, distracted drivers remain a serious problem.

Concerningly, distracted driving incidents have increased 2.6 times between 2021 and 2023.

Discovery Insure’s data reveals that just 20 seconds of cellphone use per trip raises accident risk by over 60%, making it the primary contributor to road accidents, surpassing speeding.

“Our data shows that the risk of having a fatal accident is influenced by five behaviours, namely drinking and driving, cellphone use while driving, speeding, aggressive driving, and lack of vehicle care,” explained Attwell.

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Initiatives for change

To minimise road tragedies, the RAF has implemented various safety measures, including the Scholar Patrol Programme, which provides uniforms and equipment to schools while working alongside local traffic departments for training and monitoring.

Additionally, Discovery’s Safe Journey to School Programme, launched in partnership with Afrika Tikkun, has successfully protected vulnerable students.

Attwell said the programme has more than 750 drivers on board and currently serves over 22,300 scholars daily across the Western Cape and Gauteng.

Since its inception, it has maintained a perfect safety record with no fatalities. Atwell attributes this success to driver behaviour.

“All drivers on the programme were given Discovery Insure’s innovative telematics technology to measure their driving behaviour and help them identify areas of improvement.”

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