MEDIA RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TO: ALL NEWS EDITORS
SUBJECT: AARTO – WHY ALL THE FUSS?
ISSUED BY: JUSTICE PROJECT SOUTH AFRICA
DATE OF ISSUE: MONDAY 15 NOVEMBER 2010


JOHANNESBURG – With the looming implementation of AARTO in 2011, the debate on AARTO is hotting up and there is vehement justification of as well as staunch opposition to the system. Whilst there can be no doubt whatsoever that South Africa has one of the worst road fatality track records in the world, efforts to stem the tide of road deaths have resulted in little more than meagre reductions, if the statistics are to be believed.


The Department of Transport and RTMC's cure-all system of AARTO has undergone a pilot phase in Pretoria and Johannesburg and despite that pilot phase having come to an announced end on 1 April 2010, no publications of the results of the pilot and areas which were identified as problematic have been publicly announced. In fact, all that has happened is that the problems identified by concerned parties outside of the government and parastatals have been seen to worsen considerably.


The net result has been the formation of an initiative by business and civic organisations to achieve a court ruling to halt AARTO in its entirety, announced nationwide transport workers strikes and even Metro municipalities mooting and actually taking action to prevent and halt its implementation in their areas.


Instead of engaging with stakeholders and working to resolve the issues and grave concerns raised, the RTMC, RTIA and Department of Transport has given several organisations the proverbial finger and forged ahead with their own plans and agendas, announcing, repealing and re-announcing the further rollout of AARTO.


Severe mismanagement, fraud and corruption have been the order of the day within the RTMC and despite the findings of an independent audit, which highlighted some of the extent of some of these issues, all that has really happened is that a new acting CEO has been appointed and several highly competent staff have been moved out of their positions. The suspended CEO still continues to derive a handsome salary while he sits at home I have.


SATAWU to march on Tuesday 16 November


It has been announced that SATAWU members will march in Pretoria on Tuesday 16 November and whilst many members of the public see this as Taxi drivers throwing their toys out of the cot again, it is rarely realised that it is not only taxi drivers that belong to this Union. In fact, according to Zenzo Mahlangu, General Secretary for SATAWU, only around 15% of all of SATAWU's 189,000 members nationally are in fact taxi drivers.


The rest are professional drivers who are exposed to significantly more risk than ordinary motorists due to a greater amount of time being spent on the road and a number of circumstances completely beyond their control. These drivers include those driving heavy load transport vehicles that keep the economy moving in the absence of a working rail freight system.


Engagement with SATAWU, like with other stakeholders on the part of the RTMC and DoT has been sorely lacking and the forthcoming “five a side engagement” proposed by the RTMC with SATAWU has come way too late.


The difference between SATAWU and the ordinary man in the street lies in the numbers who are prepared to march against what could quite possibly be the biggest single threat to the South African economy ever.


Pinning this march on disgruntled, lawless taxi drivers is way too convenient and incredibly deceptive on the part of those who have chosen to ignore SATAWU's (and others) concerns but a smart move none the less, given the public's generally poor perception of Taxi drivers who do, by and large, behave very badly on our roads.


Litigation against AARTO


The JCCI and AfriForum have announced their intention to take the AARTO Act to court and by our observations, this is gaining support from many role players in the business sector, primarily because AARTO is so prejudicial towards business.


Much of what is being cited by the legal team for this initiative has significant substance and when viewed from a business perspective, there is little doubt that the implementation of AARTO as it stands will have disastrous consequences for business – more especially when the demerit points system is brought into play in 2011. This could see vehicles for which there are fully licenced drivers waiting to drive them being suspended from operation, not necessarily because they are unroadworthy but because they manage to toll up demerit points that affect operators, thus preventing the drivers, many of which are paid per load, from earning a living.


Citing other systems as examples of success


The demerit points systems in place in other (first world) countries upon which AARTO is loosely based are routinely quoted as success stories and used as justification for AARTO, but what is not mentioned is that every other demerit points system around the world focuses on tackling the delinquent driver themselves, based on physical stops by traffic police where the identity of the driver can immediately be established.


Camera fines in many of the countries cited as examples require the positive identification of the driver of the vehicle or else they are not pursued, but in South Africa the exact opposite is true. Here, almost every photograph of the alleged infringement is taken from a rear perspective and those that are taken from the front rarely provide pictures of sufficient quality to positively identify the driver.


It is astounding that camera fines attract some of the highest demerit points in the AARTO system and in a single stretch of 18.6km, in one trip on Johannesburg's freeways; a driver could easily lose their licence for 9 months or more without much effort at all.


This is due to the often close proximity of mobile speed cameras from one another and if one examines the 2009 authorisations on the N1 South between Beyers Naude Drive and the Diepkloof interchange, no less than 10 sites in the Southerly direction were authorised at once. The same is true about the other direction.


Whilst it may be true to say that not all sites were used on any given day, it is equally true to say that no less than 50% of them were in operation at any given time. Therefore a motorist who (incorrectly) assumed that the yellow speed limit signs were recommended instead of temporary speed limits, would, by driving at say 110km/h down the N1 South from Beyers Naude Drive to Old Potch Road – an 18.6km/ stretch – have incurred no less than 15 demerit points on their licence had the demerit points system have been in play.


To make matters worse, during the timeframe of 1 March 2009 and 1 June 2009, the JMPD additionally set up traps at Rand Show Road Bridge where the speed limit and authorisation for trapping was 120km/h and fined motorists for exceeding 90km/h.


Focus on speed above all other moving violations


It is more than safe to say that the primary focus of traffic law enforcement authorities is on speed-related infringements and little else. In July 2009 it was revealed that 98.94% of all enforcement on the part of the JMPD was with respect to camera-based speed enforcement. Cape Town has recently revealed that 60% of theirs is for the same thing.


The AARTO charge book contains 109 speed-related infringements and offences that can be committed out of a total of 2055 charges applicable under AARTO.


Despite there being 1946 other charges, to choose from, many of which relate to issues other than moving violations, very few moving violations are actually enforced. But so profound is the confusion surrounding AARTO that on several occasions during its implementation, motorists have been arrested for committing infringements where a fine has been legislated and arrest is not provided for under AARTO.


A motorist exceeding the speed limit on a three or four lane national freeway by 30% (i.e. 156-160 km/h) gets awarded five times as many demerit points as one who goes through a red traffic light. In order to attain the same disqualification period (9 months) on their drivers' licence, a motorist would have to go through 15 red traffic lights as opposed to just 3 camera speed traps used in this example.


This is simply nonsensical and shows just how much focus is placed on speed-related infringements in South African traffic law. It is more than safe to say that a motorist proceeding through a red traffic light at any speed poses significantly more danger of causing a collision than a motorist travelling at a speed higher than the speed limit on a national freeway, but clearly, the authorities do not appear to think so.


We are not for one second saying that speeding is not dangerous and should not be tackled vigorously. What we are saying is that more notice and vigour must be applied to other dangerous moving violations and that all speeding motorists should be stopped at the time that they are caught speeding, not allowed to continue speeding and get a surprise in the post at some time in the future.


With effect from 20 November 2010 anyone exceeding the speed limit by more than 30km/h in an urban area or 40km/h on a freeway or outside of an urban area will be subject to immediate arrest if they are stopped at the time. Whether they are stopped at the time or not, they will be charged with a criminal offence, whereupon being convicted they will have their driver's licence suspended by the court in addition to any fine imposed unless they can provide a very good reason for having done so. Please take particular note that this is effective from 20 November 2010 – AARTO or no AARTO.


Operators and public transporters


When it comes to public transporters, their problems intensify, simply because someone involved in drawing up specifications decided that the average person in South Africa weighs 68 kilogrammes and it is this calculation that is used to determine overloading of public transport vehicles (like buses).


Whilst it may be true that there are some “slim-line models” around, it is completely unreasonable to expect bus drivers to weigh each and every person boarding their bus and to then calculate just how many people to leave behind on the pavement. But then there's more...


After establishing the weight of each person, the driver must then make sure that he/she seats those people, not where they would like to sit, but in such a place as to ensure that weight is evenly distributed in the bus. If he/she does not do these things every time a new passenger boards or departs from the bus, then he/she could quite easily earn up to 5 demerit points on his/her driver's licence or worse yet, be arrested and be given 6 points and a criminal record for being 14% or more “overloaded”.


Not only the driver will incur points, but the owner (operator) of that bus will also earn demerit points on their operator card and once they have reached a threshold, a vehicle will be prohibited from operating for the period of disqualification.


Operators of freight trucks for example also face severe penalties if they end up being overloaded by the consignor of a load (whether they know it or not) or if the load shifts in transit, thereby creating an uneven axle mass load as can happen if a pothole is hit, etc.


This is the reality of the AARTO Act and Regulations as they stand and as much as the RTMC says it is going to make amendments to the Act and Regulations, these amendments have not been effected yet.


The only amendments that have in fact been forthcoming are those to the National Road Traffic Act by proclamation of the National Road Traffic Amendment Acts of 1999 and 2008 on 10 November 2010, with an effective date of 20 November 2010.


Worsening since end of “Pilot”


Since the end of the “pilot phase” announced by Mr Japh Chuwe who is now the acting registrar of AARTO, on 1 April 2010, the application and administration of AARTO has worsened significantly and several provisions of the Act and Regulations have been flagrantly violated by the authorities. These violations have included:


•   Failure to address representations, nominations and elections to be tried in court. Only a very small percentage of representations have been addressed and not one person who has elected to be tried in court has been served summons in terms of the Criminal Procedure Act to appear in court.


•   Failure to issue and serve a single summons for serious camera-based offences like driving at speeds which often represent more than double the speed limit.


•   Failure to follow the “AARTO clock” by progressing to courtesy letters, enforcement orders and warrants of execution as are stipulated in the Act and Regulations.


•   Failure to appoint a single Sherriff, let alone issue or execute a warrant of execution.


•   Failure to correctly implement a National Contravention Register. To date, this is still a manual process.


•   Inequitable (different) application (or misapplication) of the Act and Regulations in the two Metropolitan areas in which it is currently in force. JMPD triples fine amounts to juristic persons whereas TMPD does not.


•   Deviation from the provisions of the Act that require service of AARTO 03 infringement notices by registered mail.


•   Omission of the “date of printing” on all AARTO 03 infringement notices that have been printed over the past 6 months, thus failing to prove that the infringement notice was printed within the legislated 40 days from the infringement.


•   Failure of the RTIA and RTMC to intervene when serious issues involving the violation of the Act and Regulations by issuing (traffic) authorities are pointed out to them.


None of the above claims are unfounded or have been dreamed up and considerable documentary proof and other examples exist to back these up.


As if it were not obvious to all, acting CEO of the RTMC, Collins Letsoalo chooses to continually point out that the objective of a pilot programme is to highlight areas and problems that need to be addressed. What he completely fails to do is explain why the situation has in fact worsened since the end of the “pilot phase” if problems have been identified and are being rectified as is claimed and why it is that the results of the analysis on this pilot programme are not available to stakeholders outside of the RTMC.


Focus on punishment


The AARTO Act and Regulations focuses solely on punishment of offenders and absolutely no corrective or educational programmes have been catered for. Should a driver's licence be suspended, the only way for a driver to regain their licence is to wait out a period of 3 months for each demerit-point over 12 that they have clocked up.


The 50% discount offered by the AARTO system for fines paid within 32 days is a double-edged sword, saving offenders money on the one hand and earning them demerit points immediately when they pay these fines.


Whilst in other countries where demerit points systems exist, “traffic schools” and other educational programmes designed to correct errant or delinquent driver behaviour also exist as does compulsory driver re-testing from time to time, AARTO makes no provision for any driver behaviour modification except by penalising them and then making them wait it out.


We (JPSA) are of the standpoint that many, if not most drivers on South Africa's roads would have a hard time passing a driving test again if they have held their licences for any significant period of time and therefore, punishing them instead of educating them seems more than a little short-sighted.


Whilst many in their ivory towers have chosen to portray the JPSA as standing in judgement as a “self-appointed watchdog” (Collins Letsoalo on SAfm's After 8 Debate – Thursday 11 November 2010), the fact remains that it was JPSA that implemented the “Eyewitness Programme” during December 2009 and this, amongst numerous other suggestions and proposed solutions to address road safety issues and errant driver behaviour which JPSA has demonstrated and put forward to the “powers that be” have been entirely ignored.


In reaction to JPSA's “Eyewitness Programme”, the National Department of Transport stated that “the department welcomes any initiative and suggestions to improve road safety” and then routinely and unabashedly ignored every attempt that JPSA has made to put these forward.


What the RTMC and the Department of Transport completely fails to realise or acknowledge is that no-one in their right mind can be opposed to a demerit points system that targets delinquent drivers and administers fair and equitable justice to those who refuse to comply with the law. But focus must be on correcting errant behaviour, not just punishing it and certainly not on making huge amounts of money out of them.


It is way more convenient for them to label organisations and stakeholders who object to the maladministration, significantly unjust and often absurd legislation that has been dreamed up and implemented as being “anti the demerit points system” or “trouble makers” than it is to face facts and fix what is actually so drastically wrong.


“Engagement with stakeholders” on the part of the RTMC and Department of Transport comes in the form of creating opportunities for their friends and monopolistic governmental business enterprises to make inordinate amounts of money on the one hand and rhetoric and contempt for those who dare criticise them or offer suggestions and plans for alternatives on the other.


We are not in the least bit surprised that road death statistics are so high in South Africa, given the apparent unwillingness of those who have been put in power to deal with this problem to listen to anyone's but their own voices and suggestions. We are pretty certain that AARTO will not be the “silver bullet” that the RTMC and Department of Transport are so convinced it will be and only time, and more lost lives will tell.


<ENDS>


JPSA Contact:
Due to the contents and complexity of this release it is suggested that Howard Dembovsky will be the only person in JPSA that will be in a position to accurately answer any questions you may have. He can be contacted on 082 418 6210.