15% drop in road fatalities since 2010, says Transport Dept
The department attributed the decline to the National Road Safety Strategy 2016 to 2030, which aims to halve road fatalities by 2030.
Car Accident. Picture: Pixabay
JOHANNESBURG - South Africa has recorded a 15% drop in road fatalities since 2010.
The announcement was made by the Transport Department on Sunday, during a wreath-laying ceremony honouring 69 traffic officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
The department attributed the decline to the National Road Safety Strategy 2016 to 2030, which aims to halve road fatalities by 2030.
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In 2010, the country recorded a staggering 13,967 fatalities, a number that the department said continues to gradually decline.
Deputy Transport Minister Mkhuleko Hlengwa said while the reduction is encouraging, there’s still much work to be done.
“Road safety is a national responsibility and it is a fundamental economic question, I mean if you look at the amount of money we lose on our roads because of accidents, the time, the productivity amount to the cost of about R160 billion.”