Cape Town - A Toyota Condor, driven by a 16-year-old, was pulled aside. The vehicle had 16 pupils, including four squashed between the back seat and the door.
The vehicle was pulled off the road during an operation in which Mobility MEC Ricardo Mackenzie joined the City’s traffic services as they continued to police unroadworthy pupil transport in Mitchells Plain.
Safety and security Mayco member JP Smith said the crisis was continuing, even after an operation that possibly saved lives.
In the operation, eight vehicles transporting pupils were impounded in Mitchells Plain.
Meanwhile, 28 pupils were seen squashed in a taxi coming from school.
Smith said in the incident of the minor driver, they were told his father permitted him to drive the pupils that day. The father was arrested on four charges of endangering the lives of minors.
“Hearing the complaints of some of the teachers outside the school confirms it. Complaints of reckless driving behaviour, jeopardising learner safety, vehicles that are dangerously unsafe, and more.
“To parents: make sure you are using a registered Scholar Transport service. Ask to see their permit as well as their driver’s PrDP. Send them this link and ask them to respond to you. Nothing can be worth more than the value of your child’s life,” Smith said.
Mackenzie praised the job done by the City to get the unlawful vehicles off the road. He said it was the City’s responsibility as the Western Cape government to permit pupil transports, and it would only permit vehicles that were roadworthy.
Chairperson of the Western Cape Schools Board, Denver van Aarde, said the City and the Western Cape government see the scholar transport industry as a murder hub for children.
“We do not condone overloading while transporting kids. Rather the driver makes several trips or finds other safe methods. As the association, we are busy trying our best to make sure our drivers adhere to the law, but it is unfortunate that all those who are not permitted are not part of us, making it difficult for us to account for all.”