The recently released WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety 2018 has brought road safety once again under the spotlight and is a timely reminder of the enormous task at hand. As we go into the festive season, a particularly deadly period in South Africa with regard to road traffic deaths and injuries which tend to spike around this period we are reminded that we need to do more, perhaps even relook our whole approach to road safety in order to save lives. Without a doubt, the report highlights that the road death toll has not decreased and therefore suggest that we are not doing nearly enough in our attempts to curb the carnage that is currently obtaining on our roads. Continue reading “The festive season is particularly dangerous on the roads: be safe”
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Shining the spotlight on non-subsidised scholar transport
As we go for the long-awaited festive season break, we should also be thinking of how our children will be traveling to and from school safely in the new year. If you have not yet made plans in this regard, this is the time to do so because it will only be stressful for you to try and make last minute arrangements before schools open. This particularly applies to parents of learners who are starting at new schools next year, particularly those starting Grade One. In most instances one has other commitments especially work that coincide with school starting times. How then does one juggle getting a child to school while also ensuring that one arrives at work on time? Continue reading “Shining the spotlight on non-subsidised scholar transport”
An opportune moment to remind ourselves of Madiba’s take on education in his centenary year
One of the most inspirational quotes by the late Nelson Mandela is that ‘Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world’. This a straightforward and yet profound statement. Profound in the sense that education not only makes for a more informed citizenry but can also be a tool to fight poverty thereby helping reduce the existing inequalities in our deeply unequal society. As we celebrate Mandela’s centenary year and as we approach this year’s Mandela Day, we should all ask ourselves if we are enabling our children to acquire this powerful tool-Education. Continue reading “An opportune moment to remind ourselves of Madiba’s take on education in his centenary year”
Reclaim streets instead of taking children off the streets
In an earlier article (May 2017), I stated that traffic calming seems to me to be the most effective strategy that we can use to protect one of our most vulnerable road user groups: children. The intention then was to have a follow up article but this was overtaken by events and I had to write about Regulation 250. I would therefore like to revisit the issue of traffic calming and put forward a case for accelerating the implementation of traffic calming on local streets across urban areas in South Africa. One often hears of the need to keep children off the streets as a way of keeping them safe. This is understandable given the high traffic danger and high number of crimes against children currently being experienced in South Africa. However, in my opinion this is an unfortunate sentiment given the already limited opportunity for both outdoor play and independent mobility by children nowadays. Instead of striving to keep children away from the streets, we should rather be reclaiming our local streets through traffic calming so that they become safe places for our children to play and walk. Continue reading “Reclaim streets instead of taking children off the streets”
New regulation on the transportation of schoolchildren comes into force in South Africa
The school commute has always been a key challenge in South Africa with most learners in both rural and urban areas having difficulty in accessing schools safely. Among the challenges that are faced by learners are: walking long distances to school, the high cost of transport, and vulnerability to road crashes as evidenced by the number of road crashes involving schoolchildren. Responses at the policy level are therefore needed to address these challenges. Continue reading “New regulation on the transportation of schoolchildren comes into force in South Africa”
Time to speed up the implementation of traffic calming measures as we commemorate the 4th UN Global Road Safety Week (8-14 May 2017)
The recently released Easter crash figures which showed that Easter road deaths increased to 235 (from 187 in 2016), coupled with the Bronkhorstspruit crash which occurred on 21 April 2017 on the R25 on the border between Mpumalanga and Gauteng provinces highlight the huge task that we face as we try to curb the road carnage on our roads. The Bronkhorstspruit crash is particularly horrendous considering that 18 of the 20 fatalities in that crash were schoolchildren on their way home from school. Ironically, the Bronkhorstspruit crash (which claimed the lives of children from Refano Primary School and Mahlenga Secondary School) occurred on the same day that the Easter crash statistics were released. While not suggesting that speed was the cause for the Bronkhorstspruit crash, it is noteworthy that speeding (together with overloading) were the main offences committed by motorists over the Easter weekend with a total of 1 730 motorists being caught and fined for speeding across the country. Continue reading “Time to speed up the implementation of traffic calming measures as we commemorate the 4th UN Global Road Safety Week (8-14 May 2017)”
Putting forward the case for learner visibility: brighten them up this winter
Available data points towards the vulnerability of pedestrians to road crashes and that a significantly higher number of pedestrian injuries and fatalities occur over the winter months. This suggests that light and weather conditions may be factors increasing crash risk for pedestrians. With the winter season setting in, I therefore encourage that schoolchildren (particularly those who walk to school) be provided with reflective apparel that enhances their visibility to motorists. Such apparel includes (but is not limited to) reflective vests, backpacks and tracksuits with reflective strips on the ankles, knees and elbows). The latter are highly recommended because of their configuration. This is because they harness the concept known as biological motion (or ‘biomotion’)-that is, ‘our visual sensitivity to patterns of human motion’. Apparel like tracksuits and jackets with reflective strips on the knees move with the movement of a pedestrian and therefore are more easily identified as being the shape and movement of a human being. Continue reading “Putting forward the case for learner visibility: brighten them up this winter”
The tragedy of our approach to road safety: Something must happen for something to happen
One of the truisms of life is that something must happen for something to happen. We often wait for crises or some life-changing experience to happen in our various walks of life only then do we act. Unfortunately, this is a familiar (and frustrating) theme in road safety in South Africa, and perhaps elsewhere. For instance, a child must be knocked by a speeding car, a community demonstrates in the aftermath and digs up the road before we install traffic calming measures; an overloaded, unroadworthy bakkie carrying schoolchildren to school must crash before scholar transport becomes a topical issue (for only two or three weeks at that). A speeding public transport vehicle must overturn and kill and or maim dozens of people before we launch a high profile anti-speeding blitz. A haulage truck must crash through a barrier on the freeway because the driver was tired before we embark on a fatigue management programme for truck drivers. One could go on and on. This should not be like this. Continue reading “The tragedy of our approach to road safety: Something must happen for something to happen”
Road safety improvement comes not by chance but through change
The just released 2016/17 festive season road crash statistics which show that 1 714 fatalities (which represent a 5% increase on the previous period) were recorded on South Africa’s roads during the just ended festive season marks a depressingly familiar cycle for South Africa: festive season crash statistics are released, followed by a lot of media attention and pronunciations to change things, then we wait for the next year’s release. The spotlight shone on festive season statistics, while understandable unfortunately is indicative of the malaise currently bedevilling the country with regards to road safety. Continue reading “Road safety improvement comes not by chance but through change”
Setting up a walking school bus: some key considerations
A common lamentation that one hears often today is how children’s ability to move around independently or child independent mobility (CIM)[1] has been curtailed as a result of traffic and ‘stranger’ danger. Simply put, parents in South Africa (and elsewhere) seem to have become increasingly afraid for the safety of their children and do not allow them to move about unaccompanied lest they be involved in road traffic crashes or become victims of crime. A mitigating action appropriate to both lower income neighbourhoods where traffic danger is relatively high as well as in the higher income neighbourhoods where feelings of stranger danger seem to be more prevalent may be voluntary ‘walking buses’. Continue reading “Setting up a walking school bus: some key considerations”