South African motorists with expired vehicle discs and driving licences have been warned that the grace period for renewals stops at the end of this month (August).
According to the Automobile Association (AA), government has indicated that no further extensions will be considered, putting even more pressure on motorists who haven’t yet renewed these documents.
The AA has said that although the deadline for motorists is approaching, time is also up for government to fix the renewal system. It has again called on government to find lasting solutions to the renewal problems, noting that the failure of people to renew these documents is mainly due to the broken system they are forced to use, instead of their unwillingness to do so.
The AA notes that even though people have a willingness to renew their licences or discs, many are faced with excessively long queues caused by reduced staff at Driving Licence Testing Centres (DLTCs) , who often work with limited resources.
“We have received many emails and calls from the public complaining that computers, printers and eye machines are not working at the DLTCs. Reduced staff numbers make the situation worse. In Gauteng the inability of many to access booking slots via the online booking system exacerbates their frustration,” the AA said.
