RTMC vows to impound all unroadworthy vehicles

RTMC advises motorists to make sure their car wipers are in good working condition, as the heavy rainy season arrives.

Pretoria residents should take note: driving a vehicle that does not comply with road-worthy requirements will put you at odds with the arm of the law.

All vehicles that are not roadworthy this festive season will be impounded by the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC).

The agency said law enforcement operations were being planned on all roads, adding that officers had pledged to clamp down on all unroadworthy vehicles as they contribute to road crashes and fatalities.

“Vehicle maintenance is part and parcel of the ownership process. As a vehicle ages, it becomes more prone to worn-out or defective parts. This by definition of the law, can make it unroadworthy and put the driver, passengers, and other road users at risk.”

According to the RTMC spokesperson Simon Zwane, the roadblocks were already on across all nine provinces.

Zwane said the traffic officers would be checking vehicles for defects such as brakes, lights, worn tires, and cracked windscreens.

“We will also be checking for license discs, it is therefore important for travelers to check their discs before departing for their destinations. We are partnering with metro, provincial and municipal officers, to make sure that we deal with unroadworthy vehicles decisively as they are the reason there are high road fatalities on our roads,” Zwane added.

“Law enforcement officers will not hesitate to discontinue and even impound vehicles with the above defects.”

Zwane encouraged motorists to ensure these defects on their vehicles are dealt with to avoid having their trips interrupted by “foreseeable and preventable factors”.

The spokesperson said failure to deal with defects will not only be a dilemma for the motorists but will also have financial repercussions on them as they would be expected to fix their cars, test for roadworthiness, then pay traffic fines and impound fees.

He reminded motorists to check their car wipers to ensure that they were in good condition, as the heavy rainy season arrives.