A Pongola resident who has been complaining about the behaviour of truck drivers on the N2 highway in northern KwaZulu-Natal said the presence of law enforcement officers could help curb accidents.
Twenty people including 18 children died when a truck driving in an oncoming lane hit their scholar transport head-on.
Community members said accidents involving trucks were happening on a regular basis in this area.
But they said the latest one was the most horrific thus so far.
Juba Hanses – a concerned resident who has been trying to get the government’s attention on the matter – said law enforcement officers would help to track down the drivers who did not obey the rules of the road.
“All we are asking for is for them to send to us RTMC [Road Traffic Management Corporation], to send us RTI [Road Traffic Inspectorate] – let there be cops manning the highway so that trucks can do the [right]thing.”
Since 2019, Hanses has raised his concern about the number of trucks that use the N2 highway crossing the Pongola area.
At one point over 1,000 trucks used the road, but the number has increased to around 5,000 a day.
Hanses said the biggest concern was that the rules of the road were not followed by some of the truck drivers, and this resulted in accidents.
He added that the latest accident highlighted the need for the presence of law enforcement officials in the area.
“The RTI is Nongoma about 60 kilometers from here. It takes them an hour or two to get here, and they are not looking after these trucks that are causing all sorts of havoc for us residents of Pongola.”
The provincial government said it would investigate the matter.
-EWN
Source Link Pongola resident urges law enforcement to monitor reckless truck drivers on N2
