President Cyril Ramaphosa has assented to the National Road Traffic Amendment Bill, establishing various new frameworks centred around the well-being of South African motorists.
The Bill gives effect to the National Road Safety Strategy comprising five key pillars – road safety management, safer roads and mobility, safer vehicles, safer road users, and post-crash response.
A major focus of the amended legislation concerns the integrity of driver’s licence testing centres (DLTCs), with several new penalties for offences committed by those involved in the licence-issuing process.
The presidency has also signed the Rail Safety Bill, regulating the conduct of the nation’s railway transport systems.
National Road Traffic Amendment Bill
The new National Road Traffic Amendment Bill amends the National Road Traffic Act of 1996 by including various measures for the suspension and cancellation of the registry of individuals involved with driver’s licence applications.
It also provides for the registration and grading of training centres and DLTCs, as well as the stakeholders involved in the manufacturing, supply and fitment of number plates, weighbridge facilities, and Microdot security technology.
The law furthermore provides for the registration and grading of training centres and driving licence testing centres, and introduced various new offences in relation to learner’s licences.
In addition, vehicle examiners who have or acquire a direct or indirect financial interest in the manufacturing, selling, rebuilding, repairing, or modifying of motor vehicles will be disqualified.
They will also be disbarred if they have acquired this interest through their spouse or partner, thereby preventing a loophole for financial enrichment.
This same policy is extended to traffic officers, reserve traffic wardens, traffic wardens, and National Traffic Information System (NaTIS) officials, who will also be disbarred if they or their partners obtain similar financial interests in road transport-related services.
Examiners for driver’s licences or vehicles, as well as traffic officers and licence inspectors, can now be suspended or have their registration revoked if they have been convicted of various offences defined under the Criminal Procedure Act.
These positions are also subject to sanctions regarding financial interests acquired in businesses relating to driving schools, road transport services, or motor vehicle manufacturing.
Anyone who is involved with the construction or modification of vehicle bodies on chassis and chassis cabs, or the the importation of new buses and midibuses, must now be registered on a national database, too.
Another important amendment is that fraud is now a listed offence for anyone who assists a driving licence applicant in committing an offence.
One more change outlined in the new legislation concerns emergency services, which are obliged to immediately respond to a road incident and render all necessary services to those in need.
“Emergency services” in this context are defined as those provided by an organ of state or private body for private use, as well as emergency medical services provided by the Department responsible for health services.
To ensure the safety of other road users, including pedestrians, emergency service vehicle drivers responding to a disaster in terms of the Disaster Management Act must not travel more than 20km/h through an intersection against the flow of traffic.
Rail Safety Bill
The Rail Safety Bill replaces the National Railway Safety Regulator Act of 2002, updating the country’s policies to improve conditions for users.
“The law recognises that safe railway operations promote the use of rail as an efficient mode of transportation and that the effective provision of railway safety demands uniform policy, norms and standards,” said the Presidency
The new Bill makes provisions for the creation of a national railway safety information and monitoring system, as well as for the introduction of railway safety permits.
It also seeks to make a framework for more consistent policies, norms, and standards for railway safety across the industry.
Adding to this, South Africa’s railway safety regulations must be adjusted to be in alignment with those of the Southern African Development Community, so as to foster greater regional interaction between other member nations, said the Presidency.
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