Issued by the Ministry of Transport
Parliament, Cape Town, 11 April 2000
Defining the Role of Transport
The role of Transport can be defined in economic, social and political terms. In terms of its economic role, Transport holds the key to economic growth in the country, because without the means and capacity to move people and goods effectively, efficiently and on an affordable basis, we stand still as a nation and a country. The economic integration of the southern African region requires an efficient and affordable system of transport. Our own integration into the life and activities of our continent makes a similar demand. The globalised world economic environment makes it imperative that our transport system facilitates South Africa's successful participation in a competitive world economy dominated by powerful interests.
Its social role is a two-fold one. First, to provide for the transport needs of the people generally, but secondly to address and redress the gross distortions created by apartheid policies which consigned black people to locations, townships and reserves far away from cities and other centres of economic life, facilities and amenities.
Its political role is perhaps not readily apparent, but it is an important one. Transport must help to unite us with the rest of Africa, so as to promote our African consciousness and the African renaissance.
Rail, Road, Sea And Air Transport: Operations And Regulations
In this context the Department of Transport performs functions in relation to road, rail, sea and air transport - both passenger and freight. The current world economic environment dictated the need for the Department of Transport to effect institutional reform in accordance with a vision which separates policy making, strategy formulation and regulations from actual operations, and secondly divesting government from being directly involved in actual operations. In this context government retains the regulatory role to ensure unbiased regulation in respect of safety matters in particular, but also in respect of environmental matters, quality control, market access for transport operators and in the case of monopolies to prohibit excessive tariffs and create a more competitive environment. This general approach ensures opening up the sphere of operations to private sector participation whilst also insuring that the operator is not player and referee at the same time. In respect of infrastructure development as well, we rely greatly on public-private partnerships, promoting black economic empowerment whilst contributing to the creation of an enabling environment for investment and trade in the southern African region.
In addition to these transport specific functions, the Department of Transport must contribute to the achievement of the general objective of creating a better life by participating in the campaign to fight HIV/AIDS, combating racism and sexism, focusing on violence against women and children, fighting crime and corruption and creating job opportunities.
Organisations
Appropriate structures and mechanisms operating at arms length have been created to enable the various functions outlined to be performed such as:
2. In respect of our airports, The Airports Company of South Africa;
3. In respect of maritime matters, the South African Maritime Safety Authority;
4. In respect of national roads, the South African National Roads Agency;
5. In respect of road transport, movement into our SADC member states, the Cross Border Road Transport Agency
6. In respect of commuter rail, the SA Rail Commuter Corporation. (Spoornet and Metrorail - part of the Transnet stable - resort under Public Enterprises).
7. We are also currently engaged together with other relevant departments in promoting legislation to set up an independent rail safety regulating authority and an independent ports regulating authority, so as to effectively separate independent regulation from operations.
In the southern African region and the SADC we participate in the Southern African Transport and Communication Commission and in the active implementation of the Protocol on Transport, Communication and Meteorology. We participate in the International Maritime Organisation (IMO),tThe International Civil Aviation Organisation (the Chicago Convention) and in the permanent International Association of Roads Congresses (PIARC). We also continue to build up good co-operation with the private sector and other role-players.
Currently, to ensure that we are able to discharge our obligations effectively, we are re-assessing our organogram, reviewing our systems and management and implementing the new regulatory framework for the public service and the Public Finance Management Act.
At governmental level we have good co-operation between the national, provincial and local spheres of government. We also participate in the Integrated Sustainable Rural Development Strategy, the Poverty Relief Program and The Disaster Management Program.
Having given a cursory overview of transport functions and structures, allow me to turn to some key areas of our work.
Safety Issues
Top priority for the current year relates to safety - safety on the road, on rail, in the air and at sea. We play a role in all of these. The most urgent in the eyes of millions of South Africans is that of road safety.
Currently road traffic management and road safety matters as well as law enforcement fall predominantly within the areas of competence of provincial and local governments. We have been living with a fragmented system of road traffic management and law enforcement -fragmented between nearly 800 provincial and local authorities. As a result, road traffic management, road safety and law enforcement have been negatively affected.
We cannot allow the current system of anarchy on our roads and the carnage on our roads to continue. There needs to be drastic intervention. There have been some road safety programs in provinces and some local authorities but there has been no national road safety program for the country as a whole.
The Arrive Alive campaign which is basically a communication campaign with enhanced law enforcement and a program designed to change attitudes and behaviour of road users has been successful within its limited framework of objectives. However, it is no substitute for a comprehensive road safety program. The matter has been discussed with the MECs for transport of the various provinces and representatives of SALGA. Everyone is generally agreed that we must proceed as speedily as possible to put before the country a comprehensive road safety program. I do not promise solutions overnight but a start has to be made and we are making a start. At the same time, the Arrive Alive campaign will continue to be an important component of the program but the program will deal with much more:
2. All driver related issues must be addressed. For example testing centres must not compromise on the standard of skill required. Stricter tests must be introduced, effective health and especially eye tests on a regular basis must be considered, driving schools may have to be registered and the curricula for training especially for public passenger transport vehicles may have to be more stringently controlled.
3. Law enforcement must receive priority attention. There must be zero tolerance for road traffic violations. We will be looking at increased penalties for speeding, overloading, drunken driving, reckless or negligent driving. Provincial and local traffic authorities need to be empowered to enable them to employ more traffic officers. We are looking at enlisting the participation of technology firms in the private sector to revolutionise law enforcement in certain areas such as speed related violations.
4. There must be closer interaction between the authorities such as the NDOT and the bus and taxi industries to win greater compliance with the rules of the road. In that regard unroadworthy vehicles must be removed from the road. Public passenger transport vehicle owners will risk losing their certificates if they deliberately put unroadworthy vehicles on the road.
5. We will also focus on physical infrastructure such as road conditions, road signage, the introduction of compulsory stops to compel vehicles to stop at certain points eg the Kei Cuttings but only where appropriate.
6. Community based and schools based road safety education programs must become a reality in all schools and communities as part of an ongoing program of the Arrive Alive campaign.
Dealing Effectively With Traffic Offences
Much more important is the implementation of the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences law. Consistent with our zero tolerance approach to traffic violations, the current situation where the overwhelming majority of persons receiving tickets and summonses for violations ignore them with impunity - will come to an end. The new system will ensure that once a traffic violation has been ticketed, such violation will be recorded against the vehicle licence concerned. When the owner concerned seeks to renew the vehicle licence for the new year, the renewal will be refused unless all fines and penalties accrued have been paid. In addition the demerit points system will count against repeat violators of the law. It can result in the suspension of drivers' licences. We hope to introduce this new system on an incremental basis in certain parts of the country which are ready for them and then the system will be gradually extended to the rest of the country. The first areas in which the new system will apply will be announced in due course, hopefully before the end the current year.
The implementation of the RTMC and AARTO laws require the co-operation of all three spheres of government. We are confident that we will win such co-operation because it will benefit all tiers. I must say that regrettably bribery and corruption remain a special and serious problem. I have already discussed these matters with the Minister of Safety and Security and the National Director of Public Prosecutions. We hope to launch a number of initiatives which will address this problem firmly. Offending traffic and other officials must know that their days of undermining law enforcement and law compliance are drawing to an end.
Again I do not promise instant results but we will face the problem head-on.
We will shortly be reporting on our last Arrive Alive campaign. We will also be launching the campaign for the Easter holiday period and at the same time I hope to launch a discussion document on the road safety program for South Africa. I hope to present the document to the public for comment and suggestions. When the Road Traffic Safety Board meets in May this year, the matter will be on the agenda. We will also consult with all relevant stakeholders and role-players including bus owners, truck operators, taxi owners, trade unions and community based organisations.
In the meanwhile I can say that the reduction of the speed limit on our highways from a maximum of 120 km/h to a maximum of 100 km/h for buses and minibus taxis has proved to be a great success, though of course there are always those who think they know better and continue to break the law.
The National Road Traffic Act was due to come into operation on 1 May 2000. However, at the request of certain provinces, the implementation date has been changed to 1 July 2000. This has been conveyed to the provinces.
A Road Traffic Signs Manual for Southern Africa And a South African Road Traffic Safety Manual will also see the light of day shortly.
Both on the road and on rail the issue of working hours for drivers and the phenomenon of driver fatigue will be addressed in our discussions with relevant role-players. Already we have had discussion with the Minister of Labour and if it becomes necessary, appropriate legislation will be passed because many accidents are caused by driver fatigue.
With regard to safety at sea the South African Maritime Safety Authority is already playing an important role and in respect of air safety the Air Traffic Navigation Services and the South African Civil Aviation Authority are increasing their activities and their monitoring functions so as to ensure that air accidents are reduced to a minimum if not totally eliminated.
Addressing the transport needs of the country, the people and the economy represent the core functions of the department.
Transformation of Minibus Taxi Industry
In that regard we have been devoting considerable energy and time to the transformation of the minibus taxi industry. Many people see the minibus taxis as a curse but for more than 60% of South Africa's people, it is the only mode of transport available. It is one of the miracles of survival and triumph for our black entrepreneurs. The industry arose at a time when the apartheid masters failed to make adequate provision for the transport needs of the overwhelming majority who happened to be black. What is more blacks were denied the opportunity of effective participation in the professions, in business and in the economic life of the country (except as drawers of water and hewers of wood). Under very difficult conditions.
Therefore the minibus taxi industry arose and represents an area of black participation in the economy to which i want to give my unreserved support.
There is every possibility of many thousands of people at many local levels throughout the country being drawn into the economic life of the country through participating in the minibus taxi and related industries. There is a wonderful window of opportunity for genuine black economic empowerment for large sectors of the historically disadvantaged communities. Our recapitalisation program must be seen as part of a broader economic empowerment program which will give millions of blacks a stake in the economy in the country.
But this process must not be seen in isolation. Because the industry arose in the margins of our society, the law was often ignored. In many instances, regulation became almost non-existent and lawlessness and violence became prevalent. Accordingly it is incumbent upon government as part of the transformation process to introduce effective regulation, transform the informal into formal and to implement effective law enforcement. This however, can only be done in full co-operation with all the stakeholders and role-players including the taxi industry as well as representatives of drivers and workers. In that regard special attention must be given to the role and concerns of the South African Taxi Council (SATACO) as it establishes itself as the parliament of the taxi industry based on democratic elections. The program also makes provision for training and inculcating pride and a sense of responsibility. We are actively involved in these processes and continue to interact with other stakeholders to bring them on board as well.
The minibus taxi recapitalisation programme is a very ambitious one. Let us explain. Due to oversupply on lucrative routes, weak regulation, corruption and rising vehicle prices - under investment in vehicle renewals has been occurring over the last decade. Apart from their age and condition, the current 16-seater vehicles were not designed for passenger transport because in countries such as Japan, they are used only as light delivery vehicles. The reality is that the age of the current vehicle fleet is making it unsafe and it can only grow older and more costly. This state of affairs suggests that structural problems exist and that interventions and institutional reforms by the state are imperative. The essence of the recapitalisation project is to replace, over a 5 year period, the current ageing and increasingly dangerous fleet of approximately 126 000 taxis with new, locally assembled 18 and 35 seater vehicles specifically designed to high quality safety standards required for public passenger transport.
This innovative scheme, developed by a task team represented by the Departments of Transport, Trade and Industry, Finance and Minerals and Energy Affairs in partnership with the taxi industry, will be facilitated via a permit swap system (old for new) and a scrapping allowance which will be available to legal owners of existing vehicles to offset the price of the new vehicles. The scheme has built-in regulatory levers in the form of compulsory registration of new vehicles onto a national permits database and forced maintenance contracts linked to the residual (scrapping) value of the vehicle at the end of its effective life.
Clearly the industry has to be based on its vehicle fleet. This fleet has to be technically suitable from a safety point of view; cost effective and operated in such a manner that it can provide a sustainable and affordable service to our people. Any industry based on capital equipment must be able to continuously replace that capital equipment in order to grow and remain cost effective on a sustainable basis. The current fleet development process in the industry is failing to do this. Accordingly, government is intervening in this market failure to restructure the fleet onto a more suitable growth path. Potential assemblers have been shortlisted and they have had an opportunity of showing what could be possible in terms of vehicle type and the associated packages of financing and maintenance. Now we need to move to our next decision-making phase. It is in this regard that SATACO's concerns must be addressed whilst at the same time ensuring that the process is fair and impartial.
Rail and Bus
I want to emphasise that I consider rail transport to be very important. I would like to see rail transport - both freight and passenger - become the preferred mode of transport. I want to make rail more attractive and we are interacting with the providers of the service in the hope that over a period of time that objective can be achieved. The institutional arrangements are being changed for greater effectiveness and hence we are preparing for the devolution of the SARCC's contracting functions to the provinces and transport authorities.
In terms of bus contracts, the replacement of lifelong bus operator permits through a process of conversion from interim to tendered contracts has almost been completed, thus removing the legal stranglehold that existing big operators had on the market. Contracts have been set aside for emerging operators and joint venture groups is a means of empowering small contractors and developing SMME's.
In our transport sector the needs of the disabled and other special needs are also being addressed as well as the development of a transport environmental policy. In addition we have a rural transport project team to address the needs of rural communities.
We would also like to see our people - especially our young - become much more self-reliant through the use of bicycles in special promotions for example. These are some of the aspects of our work currently unfolding to address transport needs.
Aviation Matters
We are also paying considerable attention to bilateral air services agreements between Africa and other countries. As you are all aware, our airport development (under the auspices of ACSA) has in the case of Johannesburg been nothing short of spectacular. Johannesburg has become a hub for South Africa and large parts of southern Africa. Aircraft from many countries now operate on routes between different parts of the world and South Africa. We have concluded bilateral air service agreements with 101 countries, of which 55 are active and 46 dormant. Many more are being negotiated currently.
In line with international trends in a globalised economic environment, aviation policies throughout the world have been undergoing change. Likewise, we in South Africa are currently reviewing our aviation policy with a view to moving away from protection, introducing greater openness and competition as well as providing a better service for customers. We are particularly mindful of the needs of our tourism sector which is growing apace. But business and trade also dictate that we must pay attention to air freight transport and air passenger transport for business and official purposes also - not only for tourism.
We are a party to the Yamoussoukro declaration which provides for the opening up of the skies of Africa over the next few years.
State of Infrastructure
Allow me to make a few remarks about the state of infrastructure in our country. There is general agreement that our national roads are the best on the continent, some of our harbours are of world standard, our airports, especially Johannesburg and Cape Town internationally competitive, and our rail service limited though it is, is also competitive. However, it must also be said that in all other respects there has been a noticeable decline in transport infrastructure in our country. My view is that this decline cannot be allowed to continue. It must be reversed. We need a dedicated programme for the development of transport infrastructure in our country, especially in local areas and provinces to address the needs of our people. But it is no use working out grandiose plans unless a funding mechanism has been created. In his budget speech, the Minister of Finance, Trevor Manuel, echoed the view of the President that attention must be paid to our infrastructure. In the current year, therefore, I will, with the assistance of experts, seek to develop an infrastructure development programme and also seek to secure an adequate funding mechanism. The restructuring plans for Spoornet and later Metrorail (which fall under Public Enterprises) and the SARCC (which falls under transport) will, i hope, result in a greater focus on rail transport which must become more competitive and attractive in every respect.
This brings me to the budgetary allocation for the Department of Transport:
Our approved budgetary allocation for the year 2000-2001 is R4 093 billion. Of that amount 94,18% represents transfer payments so that less than 6% of the allocation is left for NDOT to fund its activities. Our allocation is inadequate and we were compelled to adopt the "Rob Peter to pay Paul" strategy - reducing the allocation of the Roads Agency from the baseline of R952 million to just under R610 million so as to provide the Commuter Corporation with a bare minimum amount to meet important public transport needs.
The Roads Agency has been compelled to re-prioritise its earmarked activities - not a happy situation at all. Despite serious budgetary constraints, the Department, in collaboration with the Department of Trade and Industry and through the National Roads Agency, played a major role in establishing and developing the Maputo and Lubombo SDI's. In November the Bakwena Consortium was selected as a preferred bidder for the construction of the 380km (R2.6 billion) N4 West Platinum Toll Road. The construction of the N4 West Platinum Toll Road - a BOT project that represents a significant advance in co-operative ventures between large and small enterprises - will upgrade the Gauteng-Botswana link and create the first high quality transcontinental road route in sub-Saharan Africa, linking Maputo and Walvis Bay. It will create jobs, transfer skills, develop emergent entrepreneurs, promote community participation and stimulate regional trade flows.
Plans are also being formulated for major road development projects in support of the Wild Coast SDI - upgrading the route from East London to Port Edward via Umtata (including Lusikisiki and Port St Johns) and along the Garden Route, in support of the local economy and the tourism industry.
Finally, allow me to express my appreciation for the support I have received from the President, Deputy President and my cabinet colleagues, to the Director General, his deputies, management and staff of my department, the MECs of transport of the various provinces, the co-ordinator and members of COLTO (full name), the South African Local Government Association, the chairpersons, members of the Boards, CEOs and staff of the various agencies and institutions referred to in my speech, the various stakeholders in the private sector, especially in the bus and taxi industry, the Civil Engineering Advisory Council and all our law enforcement officers. I also convey a special word of thanks to Jeremy Cronin (chair) and members of his portfolio committee of the National Assembly and Penny Majodina (chair) and members of the NCOP's select committee for their valuable role.
The co-operation and support which I have received from all these role-players have been immeasurable. Thank you once again.