One hundred and thirty-four people have died on the stretch of road between Bela-Bela and Polokwane on the N1 in six months only.
Statistics from the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) have revealed that from April 1 to October 31 this year, there were 69 crashes on that road in which 134 people people lost their lives.
These numbers do not include other lives that were lost on that road such as the seven people who died over the weekend in Kranskop in an accident between a truck and a minbus taxi. All the seven people were burnt beyond recognition.
These are the incidents and fatalities that occurred on that stretch of road according to the RTMC:
- As from 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2018 there were 102 crashes in which 178 people died
- Since April 1 2018 to October 31, there were 69 crashes in which 134 people died
- From January 2015 to December 2015, there were 81 crashes that claimed 137 lives
- Between January 2016 to December 2016, there were 97 crashes which left 181 people dead
According to the RTMC human factors such as driving at high speed, jay walking as hit and run were found to be contributing factors to the high numbers of crashes that led to many fatalities on that road. When it comes to vehicle factors, tyre bursts, overloading and smooth tyres were identified as the causes.
The Automobile Associations's Layton Beard said they were very concerned about these fatalities because the figures are very high and that they would like South Africans to drive better than they do now.
"We at the AA don't understand why that stretch of road is so hit by fatalities but when you look at the RTMC statistics, the main reason is driver behaviour. People don't obey the rules of the road, they cross the road where they should not and use barrier lines instead of driving on the road. Maybe the issue could also be with the road surface ".
Beard said in order to curb these road accidents, the best thing to do was to go back to the basics and involve education as early as possible.
"Education is very important and it needs to start from a young age. We need to be educating six year olds about rules of the road and why it is important to obey them.
"This should be done before they even get behind the wheel. What we also need is proper driver education, effective policing and knowing that there are consequences for going against the rules of the road because people think they can get away with not obeying road rules," Beard said.