Zuko Komisa
Over 1400 people die on SA roads during the festive season.
During the holiday season, over 1400 people lost their lives in over 100 accidents on South African roads. This was disclosed by Transport Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga during the 2023–2024 festive season road traffic data release.
The majority of those who died were between the ages of 25 and 44, in comparison to the previous year, when 1,212 crashes were reported, during the period under review, 1,184 fatal crashes were recorded, according to preliminary results
Point of View with Phemelo Motene spoke to Transport Minister Sindisiwe Chikung regarding the stats, she noted that the festive period was marked by heavy rain and storms, which created challenges on the road.
Listen to the full conversation here:
According to Chikunga, there were 13 133 035 registered vehicles on December 1, 2023, the first day of the holiday campaign. This figure was much higher than the 12 964 430 registered on the same day in 2022, meaning that there were more than 168 000 registered vehicles on the road.
“Unfortunately, some drivers did not modify their speed in slippery and wet conditions. That resulted in avoidable crashes. Most of the crashes occurred in the first week from 1 December to 5 December, again from 15 December – 21 December and from 22 December to 28 December. The first week incorporated the payday weekend when people had received bonuses and were having end of year parties.
“The third week incorporated the long weekend, industry closure and the people had started travelling while the fourth week incorporated the Christmas long weekend and saw a massive increase in traffic volumes and festivities.
“Most crashes took place in the evening between 7pm and 10pm with the peak between 8pm and 9pm. Most fatalities were also recorded on Sundays, which is a new trend,”
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