Pretoria - Motorists and social media users were stunned by Tshwane Metro Police Department cars spotted along the highways that turned out to be cardboard cut-outs.
However, metro police spokesperson Senior Superintendent Isaac Mahamba said it was not the doing of the department.
“We have seen this and immediately intervened and they were removed,” he said.
So what was going on?
Mahamba said the Bakwena Platinum Corridor Concessionaire was responsible for the initiative.
Bakwena Platinum operates the N1 toll route between Pretoria and Bela Bela, and the N4 toll route from the capital to the country’s border with Botswana. He said it was part of an Easter campaign by Bakwena to raise awareness about drunk driving and speeding.
“Although we appreciate it, we will set up a meeting with them and see if we can collaborate with them,” Mahamba said.
He said they still had to verify the legality of the cardboard cut-out cars.
Liam Clark of Bakwena Platinum said they got approval for their campaign from metro police.
'It got a lot of people talking'
Clark said although they had various campaigns for the Easter weekend, the cardboard cut-outs were by far the most effective.
“My personal view is that it was quite successful. We got a lot of positive responses.”
The campaign, he said, was to remind people to make road safety a priority and to stop people from speeding.
He said they partnered with Imperial and Hyundai to add six (real) cars to Limpopo, North West and in the capital to aid the traffic authorities with their work for the next three weeks.
Meanwhile, the metro police would continue with its year-long campaign to make sure the city's roads were safe.
Mahamba said the MMC for community safety, Anniruth Kissoonduth, as well as the MMC for roads and transport, Sheila Lynn Senkubuge, had joined hands with the department in its campaign to educate motorists and pedestrians.
“Our main aim is to reduce fatalities on the roads,” Mahamba said.
Year-long campaign
The year-long campaign began in January, and officers go throughout the city to educate motorists and pedestrians on how to keep safe on the roads.
Mahamba said they studied their statistics to see the hotspot areas, and targeted those areas for awareness campaigns such as billboards.
“We appreciate the MMCs wanting to join hands with us and will continue until next year. That is when we will sit down and assess if our strategies worked or not.”
He urged people to be vigilant on the roads during the Easter weekend and promised that more manpower would be deployed on the streets.