Road safety on R300 and N2 about more than preventing crashes

For SANRAL, road safety is about more than preventing crashes on the freeways, and to this end, it continues to invest in securing the freeways with appropriate fencing. Furthermore, SANRAL ensures that the Freeway Management System (FMS) cameras are permanently monitoring 165km of the busiest freeways in the Western Cape, which include sections of the N1, N2, N7, R300 and M5.

Vandalism of the fencing that is erected to keep both motorists and pedestrians safe on our freeways remains a huge concern, and, while SANRAL continues to replace damaged or stolen fences as quickly as possible, an urgent appeal is made to the public to help safeguard our roads and report vandalism and theft of fencing.

"Between December 2018 and January 2019, we have seen a spike in the vandalism, and our Routine Route Maintenance teams are repairing damaged fences at least once a week. Furthermore, we have deployed security personnel to patrol the areas most frequently affected, particularly the N2 and R300, in a bid to deter would-be vandals," said Randall Cable, SANRAL Western Region Manager.

While the cost of continuous asset repairs are soaring, of bigger concern is the loss of life as a result of pedestrians crossing our freeways, whether to get to work or school.

"Recent research conducted by the FMS operators found that approximately 17 000 pedestrian activities occur on our freeways on a daily basis. Of that, about 10 000 include pedestrians walking along the road, while a staggering 7 000 pedestrians are crossing the freeway at grade. This has resulted in 185 pedestrian crashes, of which 57 were confirmed pedestrian fatalities in 2018," continued Cable.

Currently, there are at least 20 pedestrian bridges constructed over the various freeways and, contrary to the perception that pedestrians ignore those bridges, approximately 26 000 pedestrians use those bridges as a safer alternative on a daily basis.

"We have also seen great success, where we erected a 5km fence on the concrete median on the R300 freeway, between the Stellenbosch Arterial and the N2, and, despite some repairs to fences along the freeway due to vandalism, we have definitely seen a reduction in the number of pedestrian crossings and associated fatalities on the R300," said Cable.

It is also important for motorists to play a role in removing the motivation for criminal elements, by not displaying valuable items in their cars, particularly in slow-moving traffic during peak times.

"Our FMS operators are now detecting incidents on the freeway in under three minutes on average, and are able to notify appropriate law enforcement teams in the shortest possible time. We will continue to work with other authorities to address the issues holistically, and respond proactively to known hotspot areas," concluded Cable.

Any acts of vandalism to road infrastructure or incidents along freeways may be reported to the TMC call centre at (0800) 65 64 63.

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