Cape Town - Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula says the Western Cape has recorded an increase of 49.3% in road fatalities from 71 last year to 106 over the same period.
Mbalula and Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC ) chief executive advocate Makhosini Msibi released the preliminary festive season fatalities statistics yesterday, expressing concern about the spike in crashes which have resulted in multiple fatalities on the country's roads.
Among others, the statistics showed that fatalities increased in five provinces, including the Western Cape.
Northern Cape recorded an increase of 60.0% from 20 fatalities in 2020 to 32 over the same period, Mpumalanga recorded an increase of 26.4% from 87 in 2020 to 110 over the same period, North West recorded an increase of 10.9% from 55 in 2020 to 61 over the same period, and Gauteng recorded an increase of 1.4% from 148 in 2020 to 150 over the same period.
Mbalula said statistics revealed that people who died on the roads this year were passengers at 35%, followed by pedestrians at 34%, drivers at 26%, motorcyclists at 1% and bicycle riders at 1%.
"The vehicle types that had the most contribution to fatal crashes were minibuses, light delivery vehicles and trucks," Mbalula said.
He said most fatal crashes happened during the early hours of the morning and early evening, and they occurred between Friday and Sunday.
"Year on year, the number of fatalities has marginally declined by 3.1% from 848 in 2020 to 822 this year. We are seriously concerned about the high number of major crashes, where five or more people perish in a single incident," he said.
Transport and Public Works MEC Daylin Mitchell said statistics should be seen in context. Those released thus far were a snapshot for a specific period, specifically the period following the closing of schools and a rush of traffic with people wanting to make a start with the festive season break.
Mitchell said that during the previous festive season the roads were characterised by lower traffic volumes due to beach closures and higher alert levels.
"These factors had a dramatic impact on vehicle numbers. We are therefore seeing significantly higher traffic volumes this season and with an increase in traffic volumes comes the likelihood of more crashes," he said.
He said while they were concerned about the number of fatalities, they were also grateful to road users who abided by the rules of the road, and they were the vast majority.
"We should also note that a number of the crashes involved multiple fatalities, which pushes up the fatality statistics and the number of incidents. That is why we urge road users always to buckle up and to ensure that their passengers are buckled up too," Mitchell said.
SA Liquor Brand owners Association chairperson Pamela Nkuna said the industry has been working with the government to encourage people to travel safely during the festive season through their initiative and to promote similar collaborations that target crime prevention and the education of young people about the dangers of underage drinking.