AARTO Amendments Bill
AARTO Amendments Bill
By Colin Windell
The vile and unconstitutional amendments to the proposed AARTO Act – currently up for public comment – are simply a direct pipeline to filling government coffers and realistically have little or nothing to do with actual road safety.
The changes simply disregard the Constitution itself along with the Rule of Law, in many cases making alleged offenders GUILTY until they can prove their innocence, if even allowed to take the matter to court – as in the case of eTolls, where the matter cannot be argued legally.
This is a desperate attempt to curtail OUTA, which has promised to provide legal defence for any of its members charged and taken to court by Sanral. By removing the legal challenge, Sanral sidesteps the inescapable fact its eTolls are unlawful and that it would lose against the arguments OUTA can present.
The AARTO Amendment Bill seeks to amend many of the current provisions of the AARTO Act in preparation for national implementation – whereafter the long-awaited points-demerit system is expected to be introduced.
“This may sound like good news to law-abiding motorists who have grown tired of the lawlessness on our roads, but there are numerous provisions of the AARTO Act which, along with the proposed amendments, will literally make your hair stand on end,” says JPSA’s chairperson, Howard Dembovsky.
“The Provincial Government has asked for your input and comment ahead of the national roll-out of AARTO. Please take action and participate.
“We have highlighted a number of points of serious concern that affect you directly, including; your ability to exercise your constitutional right to a fair trial by electing to be tried in court, is to be removed entirely. If you do not take any action, your inaction will be regarded as tacit agreement with the provisions of the AARTO Amendment Bill.
“DO NOT allow the same thing to happen with the AARTO Amendment Bill as happened with e-tolls. If the AARTO Amendment Bill is passed into law, it will only be a matter of time before it affects us all as motorists and it will be too late for tears.”
Here is how AARTO could enforce e-Tolls;
A fine for failing to pay the e-toll applicable to a particular e-toll gantry is R250 per gantry for light motor vehicles and R500 for operator class vehicles.
1. There are no demerit points applicable to a fine of R250, but there is 1 demerit point applicable to a fine of R500.
2. If you pass 3 gantries in each direction to and from work each day in a light motor vehicle or motorcycle, you will pass under 30 gantries in a five-day week. Your accumulated fines will therefore total R7 500 for which, you will receive a 50% discount on if you pay them within 32 days of the service of an infringement notice. You will not incur any demerit points.
3. If a truck passes under just 3 gantries in each direction a day, its owner will have to pay R15 000 (also discounted if paid within 30 days), but that driver or proxy will have their driving licence suspended for 54 months at the end of that month, if they pay the infringement notices.
4. Remember, you will not be allowed to elect to be tried in court.
5. Also remember that if an enforcement order is issued, you will not be able to renew your vehicle licence disc, driving licence card and/or professional driving permit, and where demerit points are applicable, they will be added to your driving licence when that enforcement order is issued.
Delivery of notification of fines can now also be via electronic means (email, Twitter etc) and the mere sending of the notice will be considered proof of receipt….
However, The DA-led administrations in Tshwane and Johannesburg are discussing their possible withdrawal from the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) pilot projects run within their jurisdiction, according to Tshwane mayor Solly Msimanga.
The pilot projects have been in operation in both cities since 2007 and 2008 respectively, but are still plagued with problems. It has not been implemented anywhere else in the country, but the Department of Transport is still planning a countrywide rollout. The implementation date has been postponed repeatedly in the past due to a lack of readiness.
The two cities have since disclosed in their respective annual reports the system cost them hundreds of millions of rands in the previous financial year ended June 30, 2016. Road users owe Tshwane R502-million, half of which has been outstanding for more than a year. Johannesburg has budgeted for an income from fines of R1,2-billion but collected only R294-million. The R718-million shortfall is blamed on the dysfunctional Aarto system.
One of the main problems is that unless the road users pay their fines within 30 days of it being issued, the metros are dependent on the Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA) to take the process further. To do this, the RTIA should first issue a courtesy letter and, if the road user still fails to respond, an enforcement order is issued after prescribed time periods.
According to the RTIA 2015/16 annual report, no courtesy letters were issued in the last three months of that year and no enforcement orders in the last seven months of that year.
That was due to a dispute with the SA Post Office. The Aarto Act requires the notices be delivered by the post office using registered mail – hence the proposed change to the delivery method.
The RTIA’s failure to send out the notices within the timelines prescribed in the Aarto Act decreases the chances of issuing authorities like the Johannesburg and Tshwane metro police departments of ever collecting their fines. As a result, traffic law enforcement is rendered toothless and revenue is seriously impacted.
Some road users elect to state their cases in court, but no court cases were heard in Tshwane, while the 60 336 court hearings in Johannesburg delivered only 724 guilty findings on main charges. At the end of the financial year, there were 49 628 cases pending.
There is no question the lawlessness and carnage on our roads has to be curbed, but these latest half-baked proposals have nothing to do with road safety, are simply a tool for revenue collection and open to massive corruption.
However, it is something Government is relentlessly intent on forcing through and fleet and freight operators need to pay special attention to what is happening as it could cost them their businesses.
It is vital every objection against these amendments is logged: