The City of Johannesburg and the City of Tshwane’s speed cameras are up and running again after more than a year and a half of inactivity.
Johannesburg’s Metro Police (JMPD) confirmed earlier this week that its speeding cameras were indeed back online in response to a question on Twitter.
Seven people were arrested on New Year’s Day for speeding, including one motorist who was caught driving at a speed of 189km/h in a 120km/h area.
JMPD spokesperson Xolani Fihla said that over 6,000 speeding cases were recorded on New Year’s Day alone.
Speed cameras are back
The city’s speed cameras started working again on 1 January after a contract was signed with Syntell to provide Advanced Law Enforcement and Crash Management services in December 2022, reported MyBroadband.
Johannesburg’s MCC for safety, David Tembe, said that the contract was already producing results.
Similarly, the Tshwane Metro Police Department’s spokesperson Isaac Mahamba confirmed that the area’s speed cameras are also now operational.
The city’s cameras have not been active since May 2021, leading to millions of rands in lost revenue as no speeding fines were issued during this period.
Road Traffic Infringement Agency spokesperson Monde Mkalipi said that no new fines had been filed during this time because the city’s contract with Syntell had expired.
Not only was Syntell responsible for supplying new cameras and maintaining existing ones, it also had to load the fines onto the National Traffic Information Systems (Natis) site, leading to a year and a half of inactivity once the contract ended.
The Automobile Association’s (AA) Layton Beard said that it is crucial that speed cameras be in place as they serve a role in calming traffic conditions.
The reintroduction of Gauteng’s cameras comes at a time when many people are making their way home after the holidays and are returning to work, and Arrive Alive reports that high-traffic zones that see the introduction of speeding enforcement see a reduction in fatality rates as high as 41%.
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