A 72-year-old man from Kwa-Mhlanga was arrested on Thursday for reckless and negligent driving after he collided with a Gauteng traffic police vehicle on the notorious Moloto Road.
The man was allegedly speeding in his Mercedes-Benz when he collided with the official vehicle driven by a 32-year-old traffic officer, who was escorting road-marking vehicles on the R573 between Elandsrivier and Jakkalsdans.
An officer at the scene said: “The patrol vehicle was more than 30 metres behind the road maintenance vehicle with its blue lights on - and there was also a ‘flag man’ warning drivers about 100 metres behind the traffic patrol vehicle.”
It is believed the driver of the Mercedes-Benz ignored the warnings and hit the police vehicle from behind - so hard that it came to a stop 30 metres away.
The drivers of both vehicles suffered minor injuries and were taken to hospital.
The exact speed at which the Mercedes Benz was travelling could not be determined, but officers on the scene labelled it “unsafe”.
A case of reckless and negligent driving was opened at the Cullinan police station.
The officer said “Had the patrol vehicle not been there, it was possible that at least three of the maintenance workers would have been seriously injured or killed.
Gauteng MEC for community safety, Faith Mazibuko said: “It is disturbing that at this time of year we are seeing drivers who put the lives of other road users in danger, as well as their own, to get to their destinations on time.
“How can a driver crash into a marked traffic police vehicle with its blue lights and hazards indicators on - in broad daylight?” she asked.
The festive season has so far (from 1 to 16 December) seen more than 450 road accidents in the country in which almost 550 people have died.- Pretoria News