Minister of Transport Barbara Creecy has urged South Africans travelling during the Easter holidays to use the roads responsibly and show respect to all road users.
The Easter holidays are marked by an increase in traffic on major corridors as travellers embark on various religious and holiday destinations.
Studies show that over 80% of road crashes are the direct result of human behaviour.
“We are calling on every driver, passenger, and pedestrian to take ownership of their conduct on our shared roads. I urge those who will be undertaking long-distance journeys to stagger their travel times to avoid peak congestion and to stop every two hours to combat fatigue. To the pedestrians, be visible, and do not cross major highways while under the influence,” the Minister said.
She was addressing the recent launch of the 2026 Arrive Alive Easter Road Safety Campaign under the theme: 'It Begins With Me', which is an appeal for personal accountability.
“This year, there will be a targeted focus on preventing pedestrians from crossing and walking on highways. We will also patrol areas of entertainment near highways to prevent inebriated pedestrians from running across major roads. Pedestrians currently account for almost half of all road deaths.
“Traffic Authorities, for the first time this year, are instructed to deploy their students to patrol these national critical pedestrian locations and not release students to go home,” the Minister said.
Law enforcement will be visible in and around pedestrian accident-prone areas, assisted by the communities, and supported by the South African Police Service (SAPS).
The transport industry and motorists have been encouraged to ensure vehicle roadworthiness.
“Vehicles found with defective brakes, smooth tyres, or steering faults will be impounded immediately to protect passengers.
“We continue our intensified focus on drunken driving. We are currently pursuing legislative amendments to Section 65 of the National Road Traffic Act to further tighten these restrictions,” the Minister said.
High-risk routes, including the N1, N2, N3, and N4, will see an unprecedented saturation of mobile and static checkpoints, as the government intensifies traffic policing on critical corridors together with the deployment of the National Traffic Police.
“I call upon the Cross-Border Road Transport Agency to intensify monitoring and enforcement along key corridors to ensure full compliance with permit conditions, regulatory requirements and overloading of freight and passengers.
“We will also prioritise vehicle roadworthiness and fatigue management, and clamp down decisively on illegal operations and non-compliance,” Creecy said. -SAnews.gov.za
