Pelane Phakgadi
Traffic officials are out in full force on the country’s roads as holidaymakers make their way back to their homes.
The country’s national roads and toll gates are experiencing high traffic volumes.
In Limpopo along the N1 south to Gauteng, the Kranskop toll plaza outside Modimolle has recorded 1874 vehicles passing through on Sunday between 11:00 and noon.
Bakwena Platinum said on its official twitter account, that it was recording at least 2566 vehicles per hour passing through the Pumulani Toll Plaza into Pretoria along the N1 from Limpopo.
Traffic MEC Makoma Makhurupetje said that she expects the number to increase well into the evening.
She said that while their congestion increases, motorists should follow the rules of the road to curb carnage.
“People should understand the notion of keep left and pass right,” Makhurupeje said.
Traffic spokesperson Matome Moremi-Tauyatsoala said that motorists should be patient on the road.
“All drivers should drive within the speed limits, and taxi and bus drivers should stick to 100km/h, and should not be intimidated to drive over the speed by impatient passengers because obedience is for their own safety,” said Moremi-Tauyatsoala.
At the same time, in Cape Town there was heavy traffic along the N2 West coming off Sir Lowry’s Pass, with bumper to bumper traffic reported on Sunday.
In Kwazulu-Natal, N3 Toll Concession said that it was recording about 1 600 vehicles an hour after midday passing through the Mooi River Plaza.
In mid-December, Transport Minister Blade Nzimande revealed that over 700 people had already died on the country’s roads, majority of whom were young drivers.
SOURCE: NEWS24
