MEDIA RELEASE
Road safety does not stop after Easter
Caption: Mario Baadjies from Springbok bagged a handy SANRAL toolkit when he trumped his opponents in a road safety quiz at SANRAL’s Easter road safety activation in Klawer.
Western Cape Town, 3 April 2024 – Two highly engaging road safety events were held by the South African National Roads Agency SOC Limited (SANRAL) over the Easter weekend in the Western Cape.
On Good Friday, a road safety activation was held at the Shell Ultra City on the N2 in Riviersonderend, where motorists leaving Cape Town for the long weekend were given road safety tips and edutainment material to keep the young ones occupied on the long road. Drivers were treated to express head and shoulder massages while taking a break before tackling the rest of the journey.
Visitors to the activation station were eager to test their road safety knowledge with teams competing for SANRAL prizes, which included handy toolkits, power banks, water bottles and flashlights.
On Easter Monday, the safety activation moved to the Engen One Stop on the N7 in Klawer. Inbound road users to Cape Town were once again provided with tips on road safety, generous prizes and treats for children.
The break from the long road was welcomed by learners from a Cape Town high school, travelling back home from Namibia. The learners were quick to show off their gaming skills at the racing simulator, testing their agility, reflexes and focus – useful skills for these future drivers.
SANRAL’s Western Region Manager, Randall Cable, said: “These road safety awareness campaigns provide SANRAL with an opportunity to interact directly with motorists and road users, to get their feedback about how we can improve road safety, how we can keep all our road users safe and at the same time, we are able to provide them with some advice and light fun as they continue their journeys.
“The idea is to educate not only the drivers, but also to introduce to young travellers the importance of road safety and create awareness about the rules and responsibilities of all road users.”
Motorists at the activation in Klawer expressed their appreciation for the initiative and hoped more such events would be organised on all South African key roads.
“We are happy to stop at the SANRAL activation. We normally only stop at Klawer to fill up, get something to drink and go. But this made us stop a little longer to get rid of fatigue and get some advice on road safety,” said Dennis Malan, who was visiting family in Cape Town.
Local Klawer resident, Liezelle la Grange, had come to get fuel and stopped by the activation station where she participated in some of the activities.
Regarding road safety in the area, her advice was that “for truckers it is more difficult than for the average driver, so just be patient. Many of them are under heavy stress to deliver, so be kind on the road”.
She hoped that truckers are provided with more safe places to park while they sleep or park for the night.
“SANRAL’s road safety initiatives take place throughout the year, with the focus being ramped up during peak travel times. Our aim is to have meaningful impact on road user behaviour, so that we collectively work to reduce serious and fatal crashes on the network. We will continue engaging road users and working in partnership with law enforcement agencies to increase visible policing and support services on all our roads,” said Cable.
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