 
SPEECH BY THE KWAZULU-NATAL MINISTER OF TRANSPORT, MR S’BU NDEBELE DURING THE SUMMER HOLIDAY ROAD SAFETY LAUNCH DURING THE MEDIA BREAKFAST19 November 2002
Master of Ceremonies Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for attending the Summer Holiday Road Safety Launch. As the whole country anticipates the festive season, here in KwaZulu-Natal we start these Summer Holidays on a very sad note. Eighteen people passed away in a very gruesome accident between Estcourt and Colenso. On behalf of the Department of Transport I want to pass my sincere condolences to all families of the deceased. We have made it a tradition within the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport to unveil all activities for our Summer Holiday Road Safety Programme. To this end, I want to give an outline of major steps that we will be taking to save lives during this festive season and beyond. This year we have decided to set up rest stops as usual to provide all motorists with a safe area especially on alternate routes to stop and take a break. We are urging all drivers to take a break at least every two hours or 200 kms. The Roadside Courts will be situated in the following at Bergville, Cato Ridge, Park Rynie and Umdloti. We will also want to target long distance taxi ranks and for this reason we have dedicated a dedicated campaign of road safety and communication. We have joined forces with the KwaZulu-Natal Taxi Council (KWANATACO) in ensuring road safety during this Summer in ensuring that rank managers have been trained to carry out a pre trip inspection before a taxi embarks on a long trip. In terms of alcohol awareness two programmes we are encouraging "party goers" are encouraged to nominate a sober person to drive who will become the designated driver while the hospitality industry will sponsor the driver with free soft drinks. Key rings and badges will be given to the person. Participating areas include Durban Central, Umhlanga, Margate, Newcastle and Pietermaritzburg. Omela Ngasekhaya (Get Thirsty Near Home Campaign will take place at taverns in townships. The tavern owner takes responsibility for his patrons. The 35 community road safety councils select two taverns in their area for them to participate. To promote the use of seatbelts and to monitor bad driving there will be a Road Safety Caravan at Marianhill Toll Plaza from 4 to 10 December and Pavillion area from 2 to 5 December. Other areas will include Westmead Engen Truckstop, Clermont/Kwa Dabeka Taxi Ranks, Hill Street Taxi Rank / Marianridge. This Road Safety Caravan will also travel to Dunbar Spar – Cato Ridge, Mphumalanga Taxi Rank, Richdens Spar (Hillcrest), Pick ‘n Pay (Kloof), Metro North Local Council. There will be Taxi Rank awareness campaigns at parking areas in the Beach area with specific emphasis on the promotion of safe pedestrian behaviour at the beach festivals. Alcohol and Booze Bus operations will take place as usual at Nqutu, Msinga, Ladysmith, Vulindela, Vulamenlo, Albert Luthuli, Umlazi, KwaMashu and Pongola. Road construction will be stopped during peak times. All these activities indicate that we have planned and will implement a very comprehensive schedule of events for this holiday period, and when we talk about Zero Tolerance in KwaZulu-Natal we mean just that. In fact KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport’s Road Safety initiatives continue to receive national and international applause. KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport had the best presentation at the national road Safety Workshop in Pretoria which is why Mpumalanga and Eastern Cape Provinces have invited us to share our experiences with them. Premiers from other Provinces have written letters acknowledging that their Provinces are looking to KwaZulu-Natal on matters concerning Road Safety. It is our fervent hope that the partnership we have established with the media will help us carry the Road safety message throughout the Christmas Holiday Period. To enhance our message and to reach as many road users as possible, we have partnered with artists who have produced a Road Safety CD and Video which we will be launching at DLI Hall in Durban. We will continue to come with creative and new messages to make the culture of road safety a reality in our province and indeed the rest of the country. I thank you.
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