The South African Department of Transport (DoT) has missed an important deadline with regard to the launch of its new driver’s licence cards.
The department previously announced that it would launch the new cards by the end of the financial year in March 2024, and that it would run a pilot project four months prior to this date to assess whether the system works as intended.
The supposed starting date of the pilot scheme was on the 1st of November 2023, but the DoT has since gone silent on the launch of its new licences, MyBroadband reported.
New driver’s licence in the works
The introduction of a new driver’s licence card in South Africa is meant to address several of the most pressing issues that motorists face with the current system, such as the lengthy process for renewals and security concerns.
In September 2022, the Transport Minister at the time, Fikile Mbalula, said that testing of the new system would run from 1 November 2023 until 31 March 2024 and that the rollout of the revised cards would be accompanied by a new printing machine while the country’s sole previous model would be decommissioned.
The old licence printing machine has been a source of ire of local motorists as it has repeatedly broken down over the last few years leading to severe backlogs of individuals trying to renew their cards – something that is not surprising given that the old machine was installed in 1998 and has produced more than 60 million cards in its lifespan.
No update has been provided regarding the procurement of a new printing machine, however, as the last advertised tender for one closed on 5 May 2023, following a failed advertisement between November and December 2022 which did not draw any successful bids.
Tender document showing South Africa’s new licence card – Front
The new cards themselves will be compliant with the International Information Technology Personal Identification Compliant Driving Licence (ISO18013) standard, meaning that people will be able to use their licences in multiple countries.
Additionally, they will feature new “smart card” technology that can store data, be channelled through multiple authentication systems, and which makes them more resilient against criminal activities like illegal modifications and counterfeiting thanks to additions like new watermarks and user biometrics.
These smart cards will also pave the way for the introduction of fully-digital driver’s licences, which road users will be able to access from their phones and should help to drastically cut down on the administrative process of physically queuing to get a new card.
South Africa’s new smart driver’s cards are currently expected to launch next year with the old licences gradually being phased out by 31 March 2028.
Tender document showing South Africa’s new licence card – Back
Ongoing battle for longer licences
While South Africa is getting ready to launch a new driver’s licence, a different process is underway to try and get the country’s 5-year validity period altered in one form or another.
Multiple suggestions have been put forth, including an eight and 10-year duration, but the most recent development came in the form of a court ruling against civil rights group AfriForum, which argued that validity periods for licence cards conflict with the terms of the National Road Traffic Act (NRTA), which determines that South Africa’s licences can never expire.
This claim was dismissed on a technicality, and the group has since expressed an interest in appealing the court’s decision.
For now, it appears as though Transport Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga’s proposal for an 8-year term is the most likely outcome, though this is still pending approval and may no longer coincide with the launch of the country’s new licence cards in March 2024.
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