Taxi drivers strike against new AARTO Act because they will lose most

Taxi drivers have decided to strike today against the new AARTO (Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences) Act.

“The Aarto system penalises drivers with demerit points for traffic offences. Once a driver has 12 demerit points, his or her driver's licence gets suspended for three months. A driver's licence gets cancelled on the third suspension,” writes Giordano Stolley at Mail&Guardian.

“The South African Transport and Allied Workers' Union (Satawu) is demanding that the government withdraws the new licensing system, saying that it would cause their members untold hardship and a loss of jobs.”

You see, these striking taxi drivers are concerned about the hardship and loss they will suffer due to the new law.

What they do not want to admit to is the fact that of all drivers in South Africa, taxi drivers are in my opinion by far the worst! It is true that they will suffer and experience job losses among them. In fact, many of them will experience this sooner rather than later! They drive like hooligans, and ignore traffic laws and regulations with impunity! They are in fact a danger not just to others using South African roads, but to the very passengers they transport across the country!

If there is indeed a way of controlling the taxi industry and its lawlessness, then it must be done!

I say, go AARTO!

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New Gauteng number plates to launch in December 2010

The proposed Gauteng number plate system

I wrote about the new proposed Gauteng number plate system back in November 2009, and now finally, it seems that those new number plates will come into effect in December 2010.

Of course, one of the reasons that the current system of number plates have run out so soon, is because it never used vowels. The current system of BBB000 GP, doesn't use vowels. If I calculated correctly, the current system (without using vowels and excluding personal and government vehicles) can only take about 9,261,000 numbers, whereas if vowels were used it would've taken 17,576,000 numbers. Almost double the amount! Now they want new numbers which would cost people more, again!

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South African black taxi driver kills 9 school children

9 school children died when this taxi was hit by train

A mom's last words to her child was, "I love you. And be nice to the taxi driver," before a black taxi driver killed 9 school children when he drove his taxi in front of an oncoming train.

According to the News24 article,

"the taxi driver raced, on the wrong side of the road, past a string of cars which had already stopped at the train crossing between the Blackheath and Melton Rose stations.

"The booms at the train crossing in Buttskop Street, Blackheath, had already been lowered to prevent motorists from driving accross[sic] the train tracks."

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Driving in South Africa - Pt 5

Image via Wikipedia

...last time.

South Africa, at times being a 1^st world country and at other times a 3^rd world country, you could expect cars to be in a bit of a poor state at times. Would you feel safe driving in South Africa with a car like this on the road next to you?

This time I will not even bother writing anything. Just look at the pictures and be amazed, shocked, perplexed!

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Driving in South Africa - Pt 4

Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 if you haven't yet.

What is it with South Africans and the right-hand lane?

Here in South Africa, since we drive on the left-hand side of the road as in England, the right-hand lane is considered the fast lane, unlike in countries like the U.S.A. where it is the complete opposite.

In this country, people just love the fast lane, even if they are slow drivers. What is it with that? Why is it that on our highways, where our speed limit is mostly 120km/h, there are always several cars travelling at 100km/h or less… in the fast lane?

The problem with this is that it causes problems with traffic flow. The end result of this, especially on busy highways is a major traffic jam on the highway. There is a definitive concertina effect on busy highways when slow cars pop up in the fast lane, eventually leading to complete stops.

Remember, here in South Africa the rule is: "Keep LEFT, pass RIGHT!" Click here for more South African rules of the road.

Another thing that keeps popping up, is people who know that they accelerate slowly will stop in the fast lane at traffic lights or stop signs. Then, when the light turns green, these people will accelerate at the speed of a coral reef! I see that so often when approaching a red traffic light and there are perhaps 2 cars waiting at the light in the left-hand lane. The next person to arrive is really slow, but insists on stopping in front in the right-hand lane. Of course, the people arriving after this assume that the right-hand lane would be quicker with acceleration.

What a surprise to find out that old Mrs. Coral Reef is standing in the front of the fast lane! Apart from messing with traffic flow, this also causes people to get upset with either getting away to slowly, or even being denied getting across the green light because Mrs. Coral Reef was to slow in the front, not letting more people make it across the green light.

Another thing is that many South Africans love sitting in the fast lane playing police man. They will refuse anyone to pass in the right-hand lane that is going faster than the allowable speed. There are others, going slow in the fast lane, who simply do not care and will sit there as if it is their right to stay in that lane.

If each of us drives where and like we are supposed to, we would all have a more pleasant driving experience. By being selfish, we cause others to be unhappy on the road, and at times it becomes so bad that road rage is the end result.

Here is an interesting page called Slower Traffic Keep Right. Of course, if you are from South Africa, read "left" for "right" and "right" for "left!" Wherever this site mentions left, you should read "right" and vice versa.

So, for safe driving in South Africa
(especially you South Africans)

Next, Part 5.

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Gauteng gets new vehicle number plates

As it goes in South Africa, the government (whether provincial or national), always finds ways to make more money from its citizens. That is how it seems with the new number plate scheme.

The blue BB00BB GP plates are the standard issue plates. The black PB00BB GP plates are most likely for police services. The green HEITA GP is for personalized plates such as HOTROD GP. Finally, the red GB00BB GP plates are for government vehicles.

It is not that I am against new number plates, since Gauteng will run out of numbers by mid-2010 on its current BBB000 GP number scheme. Vehicles can keep their current numbers beyond that time, but they have to get those numbers re-stamped on the new metal plates. Even though the the new plates will be "equipped with a 2D barcode and a passive electronic chip," ostensibly for security and to stop falsification of plates, it still seems to be another money making scheme. It just would have been so much easier if only newly registered vehicles would be issued with these plates.

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Driving in South Africa - Pt 3

Read Part 1, Part 2 if you haven't yet.

Intersections

Who does not get frustrated at an intersection where you have to wait for oncoming traffic before you can turn, especially when that intersection does not have a green flashing arrow to allow you freedom to turn while oncoming traffic must stop for you? Of course, then you have to wait for the oncoming traffic to pass before turning and, in the event of the traffic light turning red, then you quickly have to turn before the traffic starts moving on the road perpendicular to your own.

In this scenario, South Africans are not very disciplined. Since many of these intersections without a flashing green arrow on the traffic light only allow about 2 or maybe 3 cars to go through after oncoming traffic has to stop for the red light, many people take the liberty of quickly "slipping" through.

For those who do this "slipping" through the red light in order to turn, without mentioning the obvious accident scenario, there are other problems with this. One of those problems is that "slipping" through like this on a red light causes a slowing down of the traffic coming from the sides. Now they have to wait for Mr/Mrs Selfish before they can go, slowing traffic down at the back, ensuring that the number of cars that should have made it through that green light could not make it. What this causes at the previous traffic light is a heaping up of cars, many of whom now get stuck in the middle of that intersection, blocking traffic from the sides. I hope you can see the cumulative effect of "slipping" through!

Even though some lights do not allow for many cars to make their turns, it doesn't give the driver the right to to make his turn when the light has turned red!

So, how should this scenario be approached in an equitable way? When you are at such an intersection waiting to turn across oncoming traffic, move your vehicle as far forward as safely possible. This way, more cars (1 or 2) can also get across the solid white stop line at the traffic light. As a result, all the cars that have crossed that white solid line can turn. The problem comes when the light has turned red. All cars that are still behind the solid white stop line should stay put. That means if you are behind that line and the light turns red, you may not go any longer! You are jumping a red light and should be fined for doing so! Do not see this as an opportunity to stick to the tail of the car in front of you and so "slip" through! By "slipping" through like this, you affect the lanes where the light has just gone green.

Lane changing

The question, of course, is which lane should you enter if you turn into a double-(multi) lane road? This is simple, really. The picture here explains it in a visual way. If I am travelling from north to south and I want to turn west, I should enter the lane on the right of the double lane road as indicated by the green line in the image. This means that if there is a flow of vehicles north/south, and there are vehicles both from north and south wanting to turn west, then those vehicles from the south should keep to the left-hand lane and the vehicles from the north should be able to use the right-hand lane. That is what the green lines portray. That means that the red line in the image becomes a no-no for the person coming from the north wanting to turn west. The simple rule here is to turn into the lane closest to you.

Why is this important? Well, the obvious reason for this is traffic flow. In this way, cars coming from the north turning west do not have to wait for cars coming from the south to first turn before they can go, helping with traffic flow. Obviously, when 2 lanes are allowed to turn, as is the case coming from the south, then those coming from the north must wait.

Once you have turned into your lane, you then change to the lane that you need to be in, after you have indicated your intended lane change with the relevant indicator.

Driving is all about ettiquette, and agressive driving is pure selfishness. Rather than making it easier for yourself by being a rude and crude driver, think of those around you. The roads in South Africa do not belong to a certain group only. It is part of an infrastructure built for all South Africans.

In essence, be a thoughtful and kind driver, not an oaf!

Continue with Part 4.

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Driving in South Africa - Pt 2

Read Part 1 if you haven't yet.

A couple of days ago I started writing a "series" on driving in South Africa. It concerned the issue of stealing while we drive. Driving in South Africa is not the safest thing to do, and when you have lived in a first world country you would immediately know what I am writing about here. In first world countries people have a greater respect for the rules of the road and for other drivers.

Today I would like to touch on the dangerous practice of South Africans changing lanes over solid white lines. "Big deal!", I hear from many corners of South Africa. Well, the next time a family member or friend is fatally injured because somebody did not keep to legal lane usage on our roads, you will probably change your mind. The problem is that too many people wait for something drastic to happen before they change their attitudes and behaviour.

As in my previous post, I would like to present you with a practical example. Looking at the picture on the left (Pic A), you will notice that a road joins a north-south double lane road from the west. The problem is that the double-lane only starts after the road joining from the west. The traffic moving from south to north are using a single lane that effectively becomes a double-lane just after the road from the west. So, what is the problem?

Well, vehicles coming from the west is presented with a yield sign when they arrive at the south-north road. After yielding, they may go, since they have a dedicated lane which joins the double lane road after the end of the SOLID white line in the middle of the road, separating the traffic coming from the south from the "joining" traffic. When you look at Pic A, you will notice the white lines I added. I also added red and green lines. Green lines represent legal driving and the red line represents illegal driving.

With the way people are driving down that road, it sometimes becomes a real hassle to join the road from the west, since cars come storming down that road and they move over to the left lane across the yellow chevron lines and solid white lines preventing cars from using the dedicated "joining" lane from the west. This is a serious risk, since drivers simply ignore the rules of the road!

The simple unbridled selfishness of South African drivers astound me. 9 times out of 10, if an error such as this is pointed out to an offending driver, you would probably have to endure foul language or rude hand signals or both.

My bet is, if South African drivers could retain their driver's licenses based on the way they drive, hordes of them would forfeit their licenses because of their bad driving and disregard for the law.

Continue with Part 3, Part 4.

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Driving in South Africa

Driving in South Africa can become very frustrating. South African drivers simply do not care about the rules of the road. Red lights are skipped as if they were green, STOP signs are ignored, solid white lines are treated as broken white lines and yellow-lined shoulders on roads have become extra lanes. Further, speed limits have become speed minimums to many. Jumping STOP signs have become so frequent that a new idiom has arisen to explain how badly something or someone has been ignored: "Ignore him/it like a STOP sign!"

I am intending to make a series out of the issue of driving in South Africa. However, there will not be regular posts on the issue, but rather I will write as things happen and I am reminded of more South African driving quirks.

Today I would like to raise the issue of stealing while we drive!

I know that sounds weird, but let me explain. Many afternoons, when I leave work, a line of cars traveling from west to east, form to join the road that forms a 'T' with our road. If you open picture 'A' on the right, you will find green lines going from the left of the picture and also from the bottom of the picture toward a roundabout (mini circle). These green lines represent the way that we are supposed to travel. You will also find red lines, the way we are not supposed to go.

At the end of the road, at the 'T', on the right hand side of the road there is a petrol station. People that are impatient, or who think that it is below their station in life to wait in line for their turn to make use of the roundabout, would slip past all the waiting cars on the left, and then ride where the red lines go, through the petrol station.

Sometimes, traveling on the green lines from south to north, approaching the roundabout in order to turn left, there could be a line forming as traffic piles up. Again, the same people I mentioned in the previous paragraph, would cross the grounds of the petrol station to the left to get on the road to the office.

Driving across the grounds of the petrol station highlight two issues for me.

1. Jumping the line
It makes me think of going to the supermarket and standing in a line waiting to pay. Next minute, someone from behind decides to pass everyone to get in line further up the line. He is pushing in! Why would it be any different when we are sitting in our cars?

People deliberately drive through the grounds of the petrol station in order to push in further up the line! These are people who care only about themselves and their comfort, and not about all those people who have already been waiting for their turn to move around the roundabout. Those people that push in like that, now make the line slower for the people that have been waiting already!

2. Stealing private property
"Huh?" I know, this has probably never occurred to you, but when you drive across someone else's property without paying for its use, you are stealing from that person, whether it is an individual, a company or even the government. Picture 'B' on the left has a similar scenario as described above.

In a case like these petrol stations, you have no right to drive across those properties without purchasing petrol or diesel or something from the convenience store connected to it.

When you purchase something from them, you help paying towards the maintenance of the place. However, when you drive across the property simply to get to the other side, then you are creating usage "damage" that you have not paid for. In essence, you are then trespassing on another's property. Of course, just because you bought petrol or a coke from them last time does not mean you can drive across their property now. Last time's purchase paid for last time's property usage!

So, next time you find yourself in this situation, perhaps you will think twice about jumping the line ro stealing from some property owner.

The question is, are your ethics based on your own personal convenience or something firmer?

Continue with Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.

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