Martins calls for road vigilance
"Minister Martins says if each motorist aimed to save a life each time they got into their vehicles, the nation would make considerable progress in the fight against road carnage," the department said in a statement.
More than 1 000 people have since been certified dead on our roads since the beginning of the festive season. The statement said that Martins has sent his and the government's heartfelt condolences to the families of those killed.
He emphasised that despite efforts by government, the private sector and civil society to curb road deaths, South Africa continues to see lives lost on its roads.
"Often the situations that cause fatalities and crashes could have been avoided," he said.
"17 of the major crashes we have recorded since December 1 were head-on collisions due to dangerous overtaking," the department said.
The department stated that 46% of all road fatalities were pedestrians, despite its pedestrian safety campaign.
Martins said it was unacceptable that lives continued to be lost despite efforts to raise road safety awareness.
"We need a 360-degree turn in driver attitudes if we are to succeed. People need to rethink their responsibilities towards a safe and sustainable society," he said.
Martins called on all traffic officers to not compromise when dealing with transgressions on the road and to deal decisively with reckless and negligent road behaviour.
He stated that corrupt traffic officers would not be tolerated by government.
"Any act of dereliction of duty on the part of any officer has potential consequences, sometimes even fatal," said Martins.
Source: Sapa via I-Net Bridge