Trackers notes increase in vehicle activity in SA
A report during the first week of the government-issued national lockdown by vehicle tracking specialists Tracker revealed a 75% reduction in vehicle activity.
As we enter our fourth week of lockdown, the company, using is anonymised tracking systems and analytics provided by Lightstone, has revealed that there has been a significant increase in vehicle usage since the start of the lockdown extension last week Friday.
“Nationally, all types of vehicles saw substantially more trips towards the end of last week. However, passenger vehicle activity has the most notable change: from 15 to 17 April people did 40% of the trips they did before lockdown, a significant increase from only 22% of pre-lockdown trips done at the same time the previous week.” Tracker stated in a recent release.
Stops at shopping centres and service stations also showed this uptick trend, almost doubling on Thursday last week from the prior week.
“The spreading of the virus is more likely with increased movement and interaction,” says Michael du Preez, Executive: Product and Marketing at Tracker South Africa. “We appeal to people to continue to adhere to the government’s call to stay home and only go out when necessary, for your safety and the safety of your fellow citizens.”
It’s feasible that people had bought enough to get them through the initial 21-day lockdown,” says Linda Reid, Head of Data for Lightstone. “However, with that period coming to an end, it’s possible that their supplies were running out, resulting in higher volumes of people needing to shop at the end of last week.”
