29 children found in 16-seater vehicle in Bayview: police crack down on scholar transport

THIS week Bayview police have uncovered alarming safety violations during a scholar transport crackdown, including 29 children packed into a 16-seater vehicle and an unlicensed 22-year-old taxi driver transporting schoolchildren.

Many elderly transporters were found to be unaware of registration requirements for school transportation services

At a road block at Apollo Secondary School in Umhlatuzana, on Monday morning, police found 15 scholar transport drivers in contravention of the National Road Traffic Act.

These contraventions included overloading, no Professional Drivers’ Permit (PDP), and expired PDPs.

The chairperson of the Umhlatuzana Community Policing Forum (CPF) Phillip Hiralall, said they were clamping down on school transport providers due to the number of accidents involving scholar transport in recent weeks.

Last week, 14 school pupils died in Vanderbijlpark while on their way to school.

Hiralall said on Monday he was not the designated driver for the vehicle, and that his uncle was the driver but had been sick on that day. 

“Scholar transport providers who cannot drive on a particular day must get someone with a PDP to fill in for them, or cancel the trip with parents and ask them to find alternative transport for their children.

“This is a safer option than having a tragedy occur. Another major issue is that most drivers of scholar transport, mostly the elderly drivers who have retired and are earning an income from providing transport to schoolchildren do not know that they need PDPs.

“They think that it is okay to transport children for financial gain and because they are not public transport providers, they do not need to obtain PDPs,” he added.

Hiralall urged parents to ensure that those who transport their children to school have PDPs and that their vehicles are not overloaded.

“Parents need to ensure their children's safety by not allowing their children to travel with drivers without the proper permits. We have also had many drivers with expired PDPs. There is a reason that these laws are in place. It is to ensure that children are safe on the roads.

“Overloading has been an ongoing issue. We have had two children seated in the front seat of a car. When vehicles are overloaded, the children do not wear seatbelts, putting them at higher risk of injury and death if there is an accident.

“Monitoring the safety aspects of children being transported to school will be ongoing. Police have issued warnings on Monday, and there will be another operation to enforce the laws in the coming days. 

“Those who are found contravening the traffic laws, and those who have not obtained their PDPs  will face harsh penalties,” Hiralall said.

At a road block at Excelsior Primary School, in Mobeni Heights, last week, two taxis were found overloaded.

One had 29 children crammed into it, while the other had been transporting 23 children.

Spokesperson for the KZN MEC for Transport and Human Settlements, Ndabezinhle Sibiya, said the challenge in the private sector was that those who transport passengers, be it neighbours or co-workers, were failing to obtain permits and Professional Driving Permit (PDP).

“According to the National Roads Traffic Act, anyone operating any public transport vehicle for monetary gain must have a PDP. A transport operator would have to go to a Department of Transport testing centre and apply for the PDP.

“The driver of the vehicle which crashed in Gauteng, where 14 children died, was initially charged with culpable homicide but the charges were changed to murder. He was also charged with operating a scholar transport service without a valid PDP.

“It is vital for parents to check if transport operators have PDP’s, even if you know the driver or are related to them. 

“It feels awkward but that is a reality. Scholar and public transporters need permits to operate within the ambit of the law,” Sibiya said.

Hiralall urged residents and motorists to report scholar transport contraventions to the Bayview police on 031 405 7211.

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