SA auto industry has a wish list for the new transport minister

Barbara Creecy is the new transport minister, appointed on June 30. She was the previous minister of forestry, fisheries and environment, and replaced Sindisiwe Chikunga, who has been appointed as minister of women, youth and persons with disabilities.

The new transport minister enters a portfolio with a raft of challenges and reform programmes. Automotive organisations that rely on a well functioning transport department contributed to a wish list for the new minister.  

Outa

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) has been at the forefront of a 12-year battle against e-tolls that were scrapped on April 11.

Outa CEO Wayne Duvange said: “The [transport department] has had seven ministers in the past 15 years and has lacked continuity and meaningful action to address the many issues that have arisen over time, be it the high road fatalities, ongoing debacle of corruption in licence testing centres, including the driver's licence validity period, which outgoing Minister Chikunga increased ... from five to eight years, and the administrative challenges with Aarto’s implementation.”

Outa said that “public transport needs serious consideration in a new administration, government’s approach to road safety needs an overhaul; and more attention needs to be given to improving the quality of traffic law enforcement throughout the year, not just at specific times such as Easter and the end of the year”.

Nada

The National Automobile Dealers’ Association (Nada) has a clear wish list for Minister Creecy. “Our primary wish is to be actively involved in the development of policies and laws that impact our sector by establishing closer ties with government departments, and to forge transformation and safety initiatives within the industry,” said Nada chairperson Brendon Cohen.

“Additionally, we advocate for updating legislation to clearly define the code status of vehicles and mandate the use of these codes on the National Traffic Information System (NaTIS).”

The Retail Motor Industry Organisation (RMI) RMI has proposed creating a system where consumers can easily enter a vehicle identification number (VIN) to access this information to enhance transparency and trust in the market, benefiting both consumers and the industry and saving lives. “This would be a cost-free amendment for the government, as the codes and a client-facing portal already exist," concluded Cohen.

RMI

Ipeleng Mabusela, CEO for strategy and corporate support at RMI welcomes the appointment of Creecy as transport minister. 

One of the key priorities for the RMI is to work with the government to create a safer car parc and reduce the unacceptably high level of fatalities on our roads each year. The RMI’s wish list is as follows:

• Aarto: Clarification on hard-coded dates for multiple phases of rollout with final clarification on how demerits would be applied to a vehicle where the driver cannot be nominated; how the billing on that vehicle would work and how access for demerit data for the banks, dealers, business-owners, car rental companies will work.

Sambra

For the past couple of years the SA Motor Body Repairers’ Association (Sambra) has been lobbying the SA Insurance Association (SAIA) for a transparent vehicle salvage database so purchasers of second-hand cars can see if the vehicle has previously been in an accident and written off. 

There has been little progress from SAIA, and the RMI and Sambra believe it is time to add to existing legislation to define and legislate the code status of vehicles and integrate the vehicle salvage data base on the NaTIS system. 

Savrala

The Southern African Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (Savrala) is optimistic about tourism growth under the government of national unity (GNU). GM Sandile Ntseoane expressed his optimism at the appointments of both Patricia de Lille and Creecy.

Ntseoane would like Aarto to be re-evaluated, with particular reference to the full integration of systems to ensure demerit points are processed against the driver and not the car.