City of Cape Town will not implement Aarto system

The City of Cape Town has no intention of implementing the controversial traffic points demerit system in its area of jurisdiction, says member of the mayoral committee for safety and security, JP Smith.

In fact, it is working with the Western Cape provincial government on a court application to interdict the implementation of the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) Act, which provides for a system of demerit points for errant motorists.

This follows President Cyril Ramaphosa signing the Aarto Amendment Bill into law in August and Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula announcing at the launch of October as Transport Month, that it will be implemented countrywide in June next year.

Earlier this month, Aarto regulations were published for public comment. In terms of the regulations, motorists will have their licences suspended when they have accumulated 15 demerit points, up from 12 in earlier drafts.

Other parties planning a legal challenge to the Aarto implementation include the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) and the Democratic Alliance (DA).

Smith says two Aarto pilot projects in Johannesburg and Tshwane failed to reduce road fatalities and destroyed municipal revenue from law enforcement.

“Although it is not about revenue, that money is needed to fund law enforcement,” he says.

According to Smith, the city’s traffic service has identified numerous problems related to the pilot projects currently run in Tshwane and Joburg.

This includes a lack of capacity at the Road Traffic Infringement Agency – the government agency tasked with operating Aarto; ongoing problems with the South African Post Office – which is key to serving different Aarto notices to motorists; the requirement for different issuing authorities, mostly municipalities, to conclude individual agreements with the Post Office; the lack of public awareness at this late stage; and the need to re-train all officers and staff.

Smith says the City of Cape Town succeeded in reducing road fatalities through a range of innovative interventions like confiscating the cellphones of drivers who talk and drive and improving infrastructure at high accident zones.

He says the city is preparing a submission in response to the publication of the Aarto regulations, but at the same time it is proceeding with preparations for its court application to stop the implementation.

He says other municipalities are as concerned. “Leaders of ANC-run municipalities ask us to stop Aarto,” he says. – Moneyweb

Leaders of ANC-run municipalities ask us to stop Aarto