The days of traffic fines defaulters are over says MEC Ngomane

Mpumalanga Department of Community Safety, Security and Liaison will soon introduce a system which will assist to trace motorists who have warrants of arrests for unpaid traffic violations.

This project will be the baby of the Traffic Intervention Unit (TIU), which will receive all the court warrants and follow the defaulters either at their addresses or place of work. The defaulters will be arrested as prescribed by the warrants and also for contempt of court.

MEC Pat Ngomane responsible for the department gave this directive to TIU on Thursday, December 1 at a meeting where he met with the unit to prepare it for the festive season.

According to Ngomane, although Automated Number Plate Recognition vehicle known as Nyamsoro was assisting with the identification of defaulters, there are many motorists who escape as the Nyamsoro vehicles could not be on all the provincial roads to intercept those who failed to abide by the laws of the country.

“Nyamsoro is stationed on one route at a particular time and motorists can easily avoid it and use other routes; in that way, we are unable to arrest all those with warrants, at the other hand they continue to break the law because they know that they can easily get away with it. We hope that with this new operation we are initiating, we will eventually deal with other law breakers who evade the system and there will be no place for them to hide,” he said.

The TIU was established in 2011 with the aim of focusing on identified problematic routes and drunk driving. Yesterday, the MEC said that these priorities needed to be enhanced as it was clear that drunk driving was the dominating factor in road accidents.

“The days of drunk drivers are slowly coming to an end; motorists must make arrangements after taking alcohol to be transported home or rather arrange accommodation because we will not have mercy when we find them driving under the influence of alcohol,” he said. He added that the TIU will assist to monitor taverns so that those who do not comply with their trading licenses are penalised.

The MEC further mentioned that the TIU will also focus on checking permits for abnormal loads and vehicles with mounted identification lights.

“We cannot have people who think they can do as they please, the TIU will be out there to check if vehicles that always transport abnormal loads and those people who use identification lights are authorized to do so. We will be out there working 24/7 to ensure compliance and a crash free road in the province,” he said.

He continued to encourage the traffic officers to work hard adding that those officials who are found on the wrong side of the law, are dismissed from the unit.

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