A traffic system which could result in the cancellation of licences for driving offences is due to be rolled out in less than six weeks, but an assessment report of two pilot projects highlights the nightmare it has proved for drivers and municipalities.
The report shows that the driver demerit system has led to several problems, particularly in terms of the training of traffic police in how to implement it and the fact that 60 percent of the addresses of motorists stored on the Electronic National Administration Traffic Information System (eNaTiS) are incorrect.
The system also poses problems for companies employing drivers which will have to spend millions monitoring the status of employees.
The report was commissioned by the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC), which is responsible for the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) Act, and the national transport department. A member of the national Aarto task team has also thrown his weight behind concerns for the roll-out of the plan.
“We will not be held ransom by an individual traffic authority”
Despite this, the national Transport Department is adamant the system will be rolled out countrywide from April 1.
Traffic and public works MEC Robin Carlisle has since indicated that the department would go to court to stop the “premature” implementation of the Aarto Act in the Western Cape. He will meet RTMC next week.
The City of Cape Town has also filed an application in the Western Cape High Court where it argued that there was little or no information from the national department to help the city prepare for the roll-out. The matter is still pending.
But RTMC spokesman Ashref Ismail has dismissed this, saying they would not be “held ransom by an individual traffic authority”, adding: “We are going ahead with the implementation of Aarto.”
DAMNING ASSESSMENT REPORT
The assessment report, based on pilot projects implemented in Tshwane and Johannesburg metropolitan municipalities since 2008, was compiled by Magna FS in September 2010. It found that:
The system was based on motorists being notified by mail of alleged offences - but about 60 percent of addresses stored on eNaTiS were incorrect. eNaTiS is the register for all vehicles, driving licences, contraventions and accident data.
This meant drivers could be incurring demerit points without knowing about it.
The pilot assessment report recommended that the Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA) co-ordinates all functions of Aarto.
It also highlighted payment problems: eNatis was not fully functional to accept and process all payments online.
Companies employing many drivers say they will have to spend millions monitoring the status of their drivers. If a driver loses a licence it would have labour law implications.
Municipalities were inundated with paperwork and high costs due to the mailing system. All offences have to be sent by registered mail, at R18 a letter.
The report recommended the development process of Aarto functions be formalised and co-ordinated with the RTIA.
Under other recommendations listed in the assessment report, it stated that the development process should start with a proposal approved by the RTIA or RTMC.
An “ in-depth user acceptance test” was recommended to confirm whether it was functioning correctly, as well as to determine further shortcomings. This was intended to make the system user-friendly.
CHIEFS’ FORUM
A member of the national Aarto Task Team, Redo Spies, confirmed that the problems had not been addressed.
He was among a group of traffic chiefs and metropolitan municipalities who signed a letter to the national Traffic Department in August 2009 under the banner of the Chiefs Forum. It detailed problems during the Gauteng roll-out.
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality’s Trish Amstrong, who signed the letter, confirmed that all the problems had not been addressed.
She referred further inquiries to Spies, who said while his team monitored the pilots regularly, including holding weekly pilot meetings, part of the Aarto Act was being implemented “illegally”.
“Implement Aarto in a legal manner”
He accused the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department of sending fines via ordinary mail, while Aarto required that they be sent via registered mail.
“We need to correct the legislation first and then implement Aarto in a legal manner.”
To illustrate his point, Spies said that despite an amendment to traffic regulations defining the “date of serving” of a fine as the day on which the driver received the notice, the Aarto Act defined it as the day when the affected driver signed the letter.
He argued that because drivers seldom signed their fines, the act should be harmonised with the regulation so that errant motorists could pay their fines. He added that contrary to promises by the RTMC, it had not implemented the recommendations proposed in the assessment report.
CONCERNS RELATING TO PAYMENT
The group also raised concerns relating to payment of fines. Payments made at banks or via bank transfers were not directly captured on eNaTiS. the Aarto Unit had to capture such payments manually and the capturing had fallen behind by the thousands.
This resulted in the issuing of letters demanding overdue payment to drivers who had already paid their fines.
In terms of the Aarto Act, drivers have various options to pay their fines. They may pay at the issuing traffic authority, selected banks, a post office, with a bank guaranteed cheque or using internet or cellphone banking transfers.
According to the Aarto website, on receiving an Aarto fine, the vehicle owner had the following options:
Pay the discounted fine in full or instalments and the applicable demerit points would be updated against his or her licence;
Dispute the fine, if reasonable grounds for doing so existed, by filling in a specific Aarto form and sending it to the RTIA as well as paying the applicable administration fees;
Nominate the person who was driving the car when the traffic offence was committed by filling in a specific form; or
Elect to argue in court that there are reasonable grounds for the fine to be cancelled.
Meanwhile, DA MP Ian Ollis called on Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele to urgently “resolve the financial deadlock” at the RTMC. Ollis said the RTMC told Parliament that it became insolvent after the National Treasury refused to write off the corporation’s R200 million debt.
The RTMC was able to fill only 70 percent of its staffing positions and had to resort to capping all vacancies.
“If this is allowed to continue, it will result in the complete collapse of the RTMC,” said Ollis.
TECHNICALLY INSOLVENT
The RTMC denied claims it was bankrupt but admitted to technically being insolvent.
RTMC acting CEO Collins Letsoalo said: “The matter is currently being regularised through a condonation and write-off process by the minister of finance.”
While Ismail confirmed that Carlisle would meet Aarto executive manager Basil Nkhwashu on February 22, neither he nor Nkhwashu would be drawn into the issue of concerns about the roll-out. - Cape Times