Selma Ikela
Windhoek-The Windhoek City Police is considering having reckless and negligent drivers’ licences suspended.
These were the remarks of Head of City Police Traffic Management Unit, Senior Superintendent Adam Eiseb, while briefing and updating the media on imminent changes on the Western Bypass where the speed limit has officially been reduced from 120 km/ h to 80km/h.
According to Eiseb, since the speed reduction on the bypass two weeks ago, one fatal accident was recorded on 6 August, on Sam Nujoma Drive. However, he said they recorded 167 accidents from January to 13 August this year where five lives were lost and 17 of the accidents were alcohol related.
“Besides enforcement of speed, the route we want to follow is not issuing speed tickets but looking at what the law provides for and it refers to once a driver is convicted for reckless and negligent driving then we can request the court for such licence to be cancelled and that is the adverse consequence we are considering here,” stated Eiseb.
He said if the speed limit is 80km/h and there are drivers who go beyond that they, as law enforcers, have the right to request the court for licence cancellation.
Eiseb stated that speed law devices would not be merely aimed at issuing fines. He added that besides determining the average speed and compliance rate, it is to build up their case “of reckless or negligent driving or alternatively a case of inconsiderate driving against drivers who are [found driving] beyond the posted speed limit,” Eiseb said.
He indicated that they would also concentrate on illegal U-turns on the Western Bypass because the law prohibits it. He said they would also concentrate on yellow line driving, which is meant for pedestrians and cyclists. He said their intervention is three-pronged focusing on the engineering, education and ultimately law and enforcement interventions.
Chief Executive of Private Sector Road Safety Forum, Horst Heimstädt, said their part in this is going to be education. Heimstädt said they have sat with Motor Vehicle Accident Fund (MVA Fund), police, and the National Road Safety Council (NRSC) and they are looking at how they can get into education and educate the people on how to behave on the Western Bypass.
“It is our belief that – if not all – most of the crashes are due to people misbehaving and they need to know this is not only a danger to themselves but other people on the road. Yellow line driving will be part of our education – it is extremely dangerous,” said Heimstädt.