Over the 2019 Easter holiday period, Bakwena Platinum Corridor Concessionaire (Bakwena) recorded two (2) fatalities on the N1 route (a reduction from the 2018 Easter period of six), which saw peak hour traffic volumes reaching just under 2400 vehicles per hour on the N1 north through Pumulani plaza on Thursday the 18 th April and
approximately 2700 vehicles per hour on the N1 south on Easter Monday 22 nd April.
Bakwena commercial manager, Solomon Kganyago says the toll concessionaire put several measures in place to encourage motorists to observe the rules of the road, abide by speed limits, and take extra precautions, especially at designated traffic hotspots during holiday periods.
In line with Transport Minister Blade Nzimande’s Easter preliminary report which noted a decrease overall in the number of road fatalities in all provinces over the Easter period. Education, awareness and more visible law enforcement should be a priority throughout the year and not just over the holiday periods.
Some of these measures include collaborating with Motus Corporation and Hyundai South Africa for six patrol vehicles, handed over to law enforcement authorities on Wednesday 20 March 2019 till 2 nd May 2019. This initiative is in its eighth year and has successfully contributed towards the reduction of fatal crashes along the N1N4 route. These
vehicles assist with visible policing, crash assistance and assisting road users who find themselves in difficulties along the route. Collectively these vehicles travelled 62 362 kilometres over the holiday period.
In an effort to encourage motorists to stop and take regular breaks during their journey, Bakwena partnered with McDonalds Bela Bela to provide a complimentary cup of coffee to drivers going through Carousel plaza this Easter period. Supa Quick and Bakwena have also recently partnered to provide valuable tyre safety information to motorists
as well as encourage motorists to go for their free safety check available at Supa Quick outlets.
Bakwena cares about the people who travel on its roads and promotes road safety on the roads we construct, manage, maintain and upgrade for the South African National Roads Agency Limited. The Motus, McDonalds and Supa Quick road safety campaigns are just a few examples of the initiatives by Bakwena to raise awareness around
road safety.