South African Road Accident Fund United Nations World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims

Executive Speech Jacob Modise CEO

Honoured Guests, Members of the Media, Dear Friends,

It is always a solemn occasion when we come together to remember loved ones, friends and colleagues who have died or been seriously injured, but it is even more solemn when these deaths and injuries have occurred as a result of traffic accidents. They are always sudden and untimely tragedies - the mother lost to her family on her way home from work, the road worker paralysed by a speeding driver, the child killed on a school trip. And what makes these tragedies worse still is that traffic accidents are imminently preventable.

So, perhaps, the most solemn moment of all is the one when we ask ourselves why, as a nation, we are not succeeding in making our roads safer for all those who use them.

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Simply and directly put, road traffic accidents are a scourge in our country. In 2006 alone, 15,3931 people lost their lives on our countrys roads thats 15,393 too many. Sadly, some estimates based on year-to-date figures indicate that this number could rise as high as 18,000 this year2. To put this into stark perspective, that means there will have been a death on our roads every 48 minutes throughout 2007, not taking into account those who have suffered serious or permanent injuries.

The painful reality is that we have one of the highest road accident death rates in the world. Above all else, we need to ask ourselves what the reason for this is. Could the equally painful answer perhaps boil down to this: collectively, we just lack the will.

What more can be said when we see, for instance, that of the 15,393 deaths on our roads last year, 12,454 were alcohol-related - more than 80%3. Drunken driving, then, is the single greatest cause of road traffic fatalities, and the one we can all do something about immediately today.

The fact cant be ignored driver alcohol levels amongst South African drivers are extremely high compared to international standards, with more than 0,5% of drivers tested exceeding the legal blood alcohol limit4. And that, of course, represents only those drivers tested in road blocks or at the scenes of accidents, a tiny percentage of the driving public.

It goes without saying that, from a law enforcement point of view, we must throw our weight behind policing drunken driving, and prosecuting offenders to the full extent of the law. Similarly, we must ensure that our roads are well designed and in good

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repair, that there are sufficient designated pedestrian crossings, and that all road users are educated about road safety.

That is the responsibility of government and the other agencies working in the road transport sector.

The responsibility of becoming a nation of conscientious and safe road users, however, lies with each one of us. It means that we all have to take responsibility when using our roads, and in exerting pressure on those who drive recklessly or under the influence of alcohol.

We owe it to ourselves, and we certainly owe it to the family, friends and colleagues of those who have died on our roads.

So, on this solemn but important occasion, I appeal to each one of you to play whatever part you can in eliminating drunken driving on our roads, especially over the festive season, when the statistical chance of being involved in a road traffic accident becomes much higher than normal.

Arrange alternative transport for yourself and those close to you if youre going to be drinking, and stop the next intoxicated driver you see from getting behind the wheel.

In this way, let us honour the memory of those we have lost, and let us prevent so many more from becoming road accident statistics.

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Thank you.

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Source: RTMC Interim Road Traffic and Fatal Crash Report for 2006 Source: Arrive Alive, quoted in Automobile Association media release, 11 September 2007 Source: National Fatal Accident Information Centre, an agency of the Road Traffic Management Corporation. Ibid.