It is finally Easter, a long weekend and school holidays combined. What could be more conducive to taking a break from work, leaving the rush of the city, and travelling to see family and friends you would not ordinarily see. This weekend, it seems, is the weekend where many families hit the coastal regions to spend the last days of the summer at the beach.
According to the Arrive Alive website, the N1, N2, N3 and N4 highways saw an average increase of 30 % more vehicles through the various toll plazas from 2008 to 2009 during the Easter weekend. Translate that into hard evidence, and it becomes a total of twenty thousand, three hundred and thirty two more cars on the road!
For this reason, every year around this time, we cannot stress enough the importance of road safety and awareness. Emergency Services collectively responded to 173 fatal accidents, where 197 people had sustained fatal injuries during Easter 2009. These numbers have decreased from 219 fatal accidents reporting 297 fatalities in 2008.
· Always wear your seatbelt when in a vehicle
(make sure they are – drivers as well as all passengers – in working condition before you start your journey)
· Children must be in a car seat relevant for their age group
(see ChildSafetyInfo.com for various specifications)
· Swap drivers where possible after 2 hours (or 160km) of continuous driving
(or stop to rest for at least 15 minutes – walk around and stretch)
· If scheduled to drive at night, rather stop and sleep over
· Always drive with your headlights on, whether during the day or at night
· Please obey the appropriate speed restrictions
(as we are all aware that our national roads are being upgraded, so speed restrictions may change for your safety)
· For Pedestrians: DO NOT walk on our national roads – it is illegal
---PROTECT YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY, DRIVE SAFELY---
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