The Department of Transport will appeal a Pretoria High Court ruling that last week declared the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) Act unconstitutional and invalid.
This was revealed on Tuesday by transport minister Fikile Mbalula during the release of the 2021 festive season road fatality statistics.
The Act, he said, was “the final piece of the puzzle in the implementation of a new road traffic management system”.
Mbalula said the department remained resolute and had persevered through challenges.
He added that it was also important to appreciate that the festive season campaign was not implemented in a vacuum, but was “firmly located within a broader safety campaign, 365 Days Action Agenda”.
“This is anchored on policy framework that is rooted in law and reinforced by a social pact with the motoring public and organs of civil society to change behaviour on our roads.
“Our arsenal of interventions aimed at delivering a reduction of 25% of fatalities on our roads includes policy and legislative interventions.”
He said maintaining national norms and standards was necessary to ensure effective performance by municipalities of their executive authority. “This is equally true of maintaining economic unity of the Republic and arresting the negative impact of road fatalities and crashes on the economy.”
To this point he referred to the long-term liabilities of the Road Accident Fund (RAF) which were now government’s largest contingent liability.
The department anticipates that claims against the RAF will increase to R518.7 billion in the 2023/2024 financial year.
He said a fragmented system that failed to recognise the importance of a system grounded on national norms and standards in order to maximise its effectiveness would only result in chaos and serve as a perverse incentive for unlawful behaviour.
“This principle is evident in all our laws that regulate road traffic matter in the country, with the primary legislation regulating road traffic being the National Road Traffic Act of 1996.”
This law, he said, was further bolstered by the Road Traffic Management Act of 1998, which established an institutional arrangement that recognised the executive authority of provinces and municipalities.
“Aarto provides an adjudication system for infringements of the rules of the road determined by the National Road Traffic Act.”
He added that the importance of Aarto in driving behaviour change of motorists and providing disincentives for unbecoming conduct could not be overemphasised.
– SAnews.gov.za
