MPUMALANGA Public Works, Roads and Transport MEC Mandla Ndlovu has called on truck companies to consider having more than one driver when travelling long distances.
He said this during the launch of the Truckers Association South Africa's (TASA) safer festive season campaign on Thursday, 22 December.
Ndlovu said companies should at least exchange once the other is tired, and that drivers had raised concerns of working alone for hours with extra loads.
"We have already started interacting with truck drivers and now understand what is happening. They will always be on the road 24/7 because they want to get extra money and a better salary. But you can't have one driver on the road the whole day," he said.
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"If you only have one, they will be working more than 24 hours, leading to fatigue - one of the causes of fatalities on our roads. We request the president of TASA to engage with companies and pay attention to this matter in order to have at least three drivers in one truck," he added.
Ndlovu further said they had raised some issues about owners to the president.
"We want zero road fatalities. We want to make sure that motorists, residents and visitors are safe."
The department has established 12 teams to fight the war against road accidents and crime.
TASA president Mary Phadi said they had proposed the re-regulation of the industry because operators were doing as they wished.
"With the proposal of operating licences, it will assist the government to police companies that are affecting our economy. At some stage, they must take responsibility to say they will be suspended and have their licences evoked if they don't follow the rules," she said.
Phadi added that they were also concerned about operators paying their drivers per load, and calling for them to follow proper regulations set in the freight industry and use drivers with proper documentation to avoid accidents.
So far, 398 lives have been lost on the roads in accidents involving trucks.
