Authorities crack down on unsafe scholar transport in KwaZulu-Natal

In a move to ensure the safety of learners across KwaZulu-Natal, authorities have suspended more than 268 scholar transport vehicles since schools reopened last month.

This initiative is part of a broader crackdown targeting unsafe vehicles and non-compliant drivers in the province's learner transport sector.

The provincial Department of Transport has confirmed that the suspensions were the result of rigorous inspections that revealed alarming levels of non-compliance with safety and licensing regulations.

Apart from removing the said vehicles off the streets, 429 drivers have been charged with a variety of offences, including operating unlicensed vehicles, driving without a Professional Driving Permit, and reckless or negligent driving.

Concerns regarding scholar transport safety escalated after a recent crash in Mpophomeni (Howick), where a scholar transport vehicle was involved in an accident that left 16 pupils with injuries.

Although the pupils escaped serious harm, the incident reignited fears around the roadworthiness of scholar transport vehicles.

In one enforcement operation last week, RTI officials found a six-seater vehicle in the Pietermaritzburg area, travelling with 23 children.

The driver, who attributed the overloading to his old age, received a polite warning from Transport and Human Settlements MEC Siboniso Duma, along with instructions to immediately rectify the vehicle's condition and comply with regulations.

However, mere days later, the same minibus was spotted back on the road, continuing to transport pupils.

Duma stressed the need for technological monitoring to prevent such occurrences and for offenders to face stringent enforcement measures.

“An investigation is now underway regarding the apparent fraudulent issuance of a roadworthy certificate for the vehicle.

"The vehicle's supposed legal domicile is in Pietermaritzburg; nonetheless, it acquired a roadworthy certificate from the Eastern Cape a discrepancy that raises questions about the integrity of the inspection.”

Duma said that it was implausible for the vehicle to have become so severely unroadworthy in such a short span of time.

As part of a commitment to improve legislation governing taxi and scholar transport, the department is introducing clearer stipulations regarding driver vetting, vehicle standards, and operational oversight.

In collaboration with Operation Shanela and various law enforcement agencies, the RTI is enforcing stricter compliance across the province to protect school children.

Inspections revealed that many vehicles were found to have worn tyres, faulty brakes, broken lights, and severe structural defects, all of which present a direct threat to pupil safety.

Authorities maintain that such vehicle conditions was intolerable and unacceptable.

This urgent crackdown was spurred by a devastating accident earlier this month near Vanderbijlpark, Gauteng, where 14 pupils tragically lost their lives due to a vehicle that was not registered for scholar transport and was operated by an unlicensed driver.

The fallout from that incident not only shook the community but also raised national scrutiny over learner transport safety protocols.

The South African National Taxi Council in KwaZulu-Natal has stepped up to monitor operations within the scholar transport sector, with dedicated members checking the roadworthiness of vehicles, ensuring drivers adhere to dress codes, and confirming that pupils were not absent from school during operating hours.

Upcoming plans include the introduction of visible branding and scannable licence discs for all authorised scholar transport vehicles.

Duma said any unauthorised vehicle found transporting pupils will be impounded, and operators will be prosecuted.

Phoenix Scholar association member Krishen Chetty said he supported what the RTI and the department's program as it sought to save lives.

Chetty said they were ferrying the future leaders, so it was only fair that they obeyed the rules.

"Some of our guys are just here for the money, they don't invest in their business. If you don't service one thing that brings food in your house who should, it starts with small things like washing your vehicle every single day, then it will be easy to change wheels, wipers breaks and all the necessary things that needs fixing," he added. 

DAILY NEWS