What if my vehicle ends up in the water?

What if my vehicle ends up in the water?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Police revealed that two people drowned in the Msunduzi River at the weekend when their car plunged into the water. The driver apparently lost control of the car and the two adults drowned.

Last month the editor of “Go! Magazine” enquired with regards to the availability of information on safety and driving near rivers and flooding. This important aspect of road safety is often neglected as it is seldom encountered by motorists. Most of us are fortunate enough not to have encountered sudden floods on our path and avoid any attempt at crossing through water. It is however also important to be aware of this risk!

The most important safety hint would be to avoid crossing a river with your vehicle! Do not assume that the road surface beneath the water has remained stable! If you have no other option and your vehicle becomes submerged under water – stay calm and try to remember the safety hints included on the Arrive Alive Website under “Surviving from a vehicle submerged under water”

Some of the Golden Safety Rules are:

• It may seem obvious – but don’t try to save anything except lives. Computers, phones, purses, jewellery, etc. can be replaced – you can’t!
• What about passengers in the vehicle? – Before you can save anyone else, you have to first save yourself!
• Once you reach the surface, take a few seconds to get your bearings, and if you have the swimming skills, take a deep breath and go back down. Hopefully, you can help someone else escape.
• Unless there is another person in the car that you are trying to save, you should never go back into a sinking or submerged vehicle. There is nothing, short of saving another person that is worth the risk.
• You and your passengers need to focus on one goal only and that is “to exit the car as quickly as possible”.

Rolling Enforcement Plan to target traffic offenders!

Rolling Enforcement Plan to target traffic offenders!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Effective traffic enforcement is the most important component to any road safety strategy! But how will this be achieved and what are the focus areas of such a strategy?

The Road Traffic Management Corporation provided insight on this strategy as compiled in the “Rolling Enforcement Plan”. This Plan was compiled in consultation with the members of the Law Enforcement Technical Committee (LETCOM), a Sub-committee of the Road Traffic Management Co-ordinating Committee (RTMCC).

Special Focus areas are:

1. Driver Fitness: documentation, fatigue, alcohol abuse;

2. Moving Violations: barrier lines, red light infringements, cell phones, over-speeding;

3. Overloading: passenger and freight transport vehicles;

4. Vehicle Fitness: documentation, roadworthiness and registration plate enforcement;

5. Pedestrian Safety: pedestrian jay-walking, drink and walk;

6. Seatbelts: a stand-alone three-month campaign.

7. Vehicle visibility, defective front and rear lamps

8. Following distances between heavy vehicles, inconsiderate driving

9. Crime Prevention/Public Safety/Pro Active Policing

The Objectives of the Rolling Enforcement plan are:

1  To reduce accidents, fatalities and injuries.

2 To create a heightened awareness of road traffic safety issues.

3 To inculcate good road user behaviour and encourage voluntary compliance.

4 To increase detection and pro secution of critical offences.

5 To reduce offence rates on all key safety indices.
  
6 To reduce road accident trauma and costs.

7 To restore confidence and respect for the road traffic management fraternity.

8 To project a professional image of the enforcement practitioners.

9 To harmonize and co-ordinate common operations at all three tiers of service delivery.

10 To maximize communications and publicity exposure for enforcement issues.

11 Create fatigue management strategies

12 To assist in crime prevention activities and pro active policing initiatives

The Arrive Alive Road Safety Website and the Road Safety & Arrive Alive Blog will offer to assist in the objective to maximize communications and publicity exposure for enforcement issues. We would like to congratulate the RTMC with this formalized road safety strategy and extend our best wishes to all the officers on the implementation of these measures!

Are we aware of the two-wheelers around us?

Are we aware of the two-wheelers around us?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

An interesting story titled “Here come the “two-wheelers” appeared in the Tribune and was also reported online on IOL.co.za. This is in line with our earlier Blog post “Petrol price might increase the bikers sharing the road”. A few interesting observations in the story are:

- Many South Africans are switching from cars to two-wheelers, such as scooters or small motorcycles.
- Locals in Durban were opting for motorcycles or scooters primarily to save fuel and considered it a bonus to be able to move through traffic easily, whereas Johannesburg residents cited traffic problems as their chief reason for switching.
- According to the Association of Motorcycle Importers and Distributors (Amid), sales started picking up in 2004.
- Some of the biggest motorcycle dealerships in Durban, including Suzuki, Honda and Cycle Craft Yamaha confirmed almost all customers looking for scooters were doing so because of the increase in the petrol price.
- Vespa South Africa said in a press release sales of the “stylish” two-wheelers had increased by 50 percent a year since their launch in this country in 2003.
- The same trend towards two-wheelers is happening elsewhere, with American sales up 24 percent in the first quarter of this year in the heart of the US winter, when the weather makes bike or scooter riding less pleasant.
- One drawback is safety on roads congested with cars, taxis and trucks.
- According to research, one of the hazards riders face is that motorists simply do not see the bikes and scooters and cut in front of them.

With this increase it becomes more important that these motorcyclists continue to place an emphasis on safety – and for other road users to be more aware of these road users around them.

The Arrive Alive Road Safety Website and this Blog would like to urge new owners to join road safety awareness organizations such as Think Bike and sharpen their riding skills through initiatives such as OTRE [On Track Riding Experience].

We will ask the members of Think Bike to provide their safety suggestions and share these with road users considering motorcycling as a mode of transport.