North road safety activist vies for international award
She is the founding member of Drive More Safely, an NGO working with the Department of Transport and Traffic departments to educate, empower and save lives on the roads.
A woman from the north of Pretoria is making waves in the world of road safety.
Alida Venter, a road safety activist, has been nominated for the Prince Michael of Kent Road Safety Award to be crowned in London this August.
This is the highest international award that recognises outstanding achievement and innovators in road safety worldwide.
Road safety is a major issue in Tshwane, with more people dying in road accidents. However, Venter’s exceptional work is to scrap down on this.
The Mountain View resident will be vying for this award and is hoping to bring it home.
She has previously won some other awards and established herself as a pathfinder in road safety.
Venter was nominated for her tireless efforts to promote change in road safety and the outstanding work her NGO is doing.
She is the founding member of Drive More Safely, an NGO working with the Department of Transport to educate, empower and save lives on the roads.
This NGO was established in Cape Town and moved with Venter when she relocated to the north of Pretoria.
“I lost my eldest son in a car crash due to a drunken driver and had to choose to stand up and make a difference,” she said.
After her son’s death, Venter became determined to do something to prevent other families from experiencing the same tragedy.
She started volunteering with a local road safety organisation, and eventually dedicated her life to road safety.
Drive More Safely focuses on reducing road crashes and child fatalities in accidents.
“We are more focused on tuning down the unnecessary road deaths through the child safety in the vehicle and on the roads campaign.”
She said they are also doing a ‘Take a break, a driver fatigue project’.
The NGO also visits schools raising road safety awareness and educating children.
Drive More Safely is more active in doing road camps during Easter and Christmas holidays when it provides tea and coffee for free, and does blood pressure and sugar testing for drivers.
“All this we do together with provincial traffic, SAPS and emergency services. This acts as a 24-hour roadblock,” said Venter.
Venter said as a civil engineer and a road crash forensic expert she will use her expertise to help the locals minimise road accidents.
She said her biggest accomplishment will be the change to the law on child restraints in vehicles.
“It took three years of active activism to advocate for this,” Venter told Rekord.
She said her goal is to create a future where no family has to experience the pain of losing a loved one in a road accident.
“We are determined to make this a reality through our road safety initiatives.”
Venter stated that being nominated is already a win for her and it shows her hard work is being recognised.
“Winning will be the cherry on top of all my hard work and sacrifice.”
She is currently holding the accolade for African Excellence Business Awards Best Road Safety Organisation South Africa 2022.
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