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SPEECH BY KWAZULU-NATAL MINISTER OF TRANSPORT DURING THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF MAN TRUCK AND BUS, PINETOWN10 April 2001
Master of Ceremonies In his State of the Nation Address, President Thabo Mbeki stated that the Government would embark upon a managed liberalisation of the energy and transport sectors and that this will in turn be accompanied by restructuring and new investments in the infrastructure affecting these sectors. The opening of Man Truck and Bus dealership therefore comes at a time when the President of the country has already issued a directive for the restructuring of the transport sector and consequently the creation of a healthy investment climate at national, provincial and local spheres of Government. Last month the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Roads Act, No.4 of 2001 was passed by the KZN Government and, for the first time in the history of the Province, there is an Act that empowers the Minister of transform, restructure and establish the provincial road network. This in turn will open myriad opportunities for service providers like Man Truck and Bus who would be able to access untapped markets. This Bill also unlocks access opportunities to the landlocked communities. The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport understands that for the economy to grow, an efficient transportation system becomes imperative. The movement of people and goods are a cost component of conducting business. Our job within the Department of Transport is to provide infrastructure and to eliminate inefficiencies to reduce such cost. In this regard the key strategic intervention we are making as a Department is to open the Provincial economy by:
The strategic interventions mentioned here go hand in hand with the restructuring of the state-owned parastatals. For instance, the KwaZulu Transport (Bus service owned by the Provincial Government) and Durban Transport (owned by Durban Metro) are both being restructured so as to address the following:
The Provincial Rail System will be restructured in such a way that it increases the share of the freight and passenger services in the province. We have already begun a study in consultation with Spoornet that will assist us in the following:
The efforts of the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport are guided by the following imperatives:
I must congratulate Man Truck and Bus for being one of the finest transport service providers in the country. It is worth mentioning that the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport has had a good working relationship with Man Truck and Bus who have always sought our advice on various issues related to transport. It is encouraging to note that Man Truck and Bus has increased its market share from 7% in 1997 to 16,2% in 2000. The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport is proud to be associated with such a globally competitive company. Man Truck & Bus operates at a time when transport as an important factor in our economy is facing manifold challenges. Your responses to these challenges will have a direct impact on our economy, the country and the continent. On the one hand one may cite the significance of modifying trucks to suit South African conditions. On the other hand electronic business has come with new challenges at the time when local trucking companies are still grappling with the grim realities of globalisation and international competition. The shortage of good drivers, labour demand, fuel prices, the state of roads as well as the impact of HIV/AIDS all converge to pose serious challenges to both trucking and bus industries. Whether we realise it or not transport has become a pillar of our economy. According to the moving South Africa Strategy, transport is an enabling industry which exists not only to meet the goals inherent to transport but also meet other pressing national and social objectives. These include, as I have already indicated,
With more than 80% of goods and people in this province being transported by road, overloading has become a serious problem on our roads. However, the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport has developed an international reputation for its home-grown overloading competency. As such the Department is acknowledged as a leader in South Africa and Southern Africa, and is also considered to be even more advanced than Victoria in Australia, Sweden, England, Holland and several states in America. In spite of recent reports about overloaded trucks avoiding the N2 and N3 routes, it has emerged that KwaZulu-Natal has the lowest overloading control and heavy motor vehicle safety. We have finalised a co-operative agreement with the South African National Roads Agency known as the N3 Overloading Corridor Project. This is a first in South Africa and appears likely to be a first internationally. The SANRA Agreement means that national Government pays an annual amount to the KZN Department of Transport for three years to staff stations on N3 and N11 with an additional shift of patrol officers. This provides 24-hour cover with an emphasis on overloading control and heavy motor vehicle safety. The aim is to save lives as well as to protect the country's investment in road infrastructure. As a result of this agreement 47 new RTI officers were appointed on January 4, last year. Seven extra promotional posts were also being funded in terms of this agreement. In that way the Department of Transport was able to reduce the highway hijackings and the robbery of heavy vehicles. This has in turn benefited trucking and bus companies that have experienced a relative decline in terms of the number of hijackings. In the final analysis, I would like to congratulate Man Truck and Bus South Africa for this new dealership. I thank you.
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