Siyabona Bonakala - Can you see and be seen on the road?

The process of reissuing drivers’ licenses to about 700 000 people in the province has revealed that an alarming number of drivers re-applying for their licenses have failed the obligatory eye test. This has prompted fears that there could be more poor-sighted motorists on the roads.

KZN Transport MEC, Mr S’bu Ndebele has already launched a campaign to be known as "Siyabona Bonakala", to ensure that all who drive on provincial roads can see clearly.

Mr Ndebele observed that failure rates of eye tests offered at testing stations had made his Department to ask the big question: how many people on our roads cannot see clearly, and how does this impact on the ability of our citizens to drive safely-especially at night?

He pointed out that his Department had always examined issues of sobriety, fatigue and vehicular condition. However, no attempt had been made to clarify whether there is a link between the accident and driver’s ability to see clearly.

Mr Ndebele said that the urgency of the question of vision and road safety compelled the DOT to take a serious and pro-active stance.

Although optometry services and glasses supply is just becoming available in some public hospitals of KwaZulu-Natal, the DOT will see drivers in the public transport sector such as the buses, and taxis services, the Minister explained.

Ultimately, all those who drive government vehicles should be screened by a professional, and given a pair of affordable spectacles if they needed them, he concluded.

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