Implementation of the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) Act is being held off to avoid the backlash that accompanied the e-tolling project.
Aarto manager Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) says the system is technically ready for rollout.
However, acting CEO Collins Letsoalo says an implementation date has not yet been set, because there needs to be public consultation and engagement with stakeholders first. “We are also thinking of having a summit on Aarto.”
This is to avoid a situation similar to the one plaguing the Gauteng e-tolling system, where toll fees were announced with no public engagement and then suspended due to outrage over the prices and system, as a whole.
Transport minister Sibusiso Ndebele last month said: “The Aarto Act was passed 12 years ago. Its implementation has seen too many confusing starts and stops, which have been very confusing to the public.”
Aarto will see the allocation of demerit points to traffic law infringers. Pilot projects are being run in the municipalities of Tshwane and Johannesburg.
Ndebele says the Act will be implemented in the financial year beginning 1 April, with no definite date as yet.
Aarto education
Educating the public around Aarto and the need for stronger communication were issues identified, among others, with the pilot projects.
“We have the support of Cosatu's [Congress of South African Trade Unions'] central executive committee, but there is just the issue of making people aware of Aarto and how it works and that's what we want to do.”
Cosatu previously said it supports measures that will end the carnage on roads by punishing offenders and ending the culture of impunity.
“Workers should, however, not be punished for the non-roadworthiness of the vehicles that do not belong to them. The demerits system must punish owners and not workers,” it stated.
Demerit drivers
With the Aarto system, drivers lose points when they commit traffic offences and this will be reflected on the National Contravention Register on eNatis.
All drivers have 12 points to start with, and lose a certain amount of them depending on the severity of the offence. This could eventually lead to the suspension of one's licence. However, points can also be earned through good behaviour.
The RTMC previously said it would spend over R300 million on IT and marketing for the demerit system.
Share