Media Release by Daylin Mitchell, Western Cape Minister of Transport and Public Works
The Western Cape Department of Transport and Public Works (DTPW) welcomes the Gauteng High Court judgment handed down today which found the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) Act and the AARTO Amendment Act to be unconstitutional and invalid.
The court was asked to consider whether, by creating a single national system to regulate road traffic, the national government had trespassed on exclusive legislative competence of provinces to regulate provincial and municipal traffic. The court found that the national government had indeed trespassed on this exclusive provincial competence.
“The Western Cape was the only province that did not support aspects of the AARTO Act and the AARTO Amendment Act during the National Council of Provinces legislative process,” said Daylin Mitchell, Provincial Minister of Transport and Public Works. “The DTPW is in full support of legislation which provides different mechanisms like the proposed AARTO demerit system and welcomes all legislation that will effectively make our roads safer. However, there are a number of issues in these Acts that we raised during the legislative process and that we believe were not adequately addressed before these laws were enacted,” he added.
DTPW showed its support for safer roads by preparing for the implementation of AARTO, but made it clear to the national Department of Transport that full implementation would not be possible. While this matter may be subject to an appeal in the Supreme Court of Appeal and possibly go to the Constitutional Court, the judgment provides time for much-needed work behind the scenes to address the issues that DTPW identified. The DTPW has continued to participate in the various processes and has submitted extensive constructive commentary. The Western Cape Government remains committed to finding legislative mechanisms to improve road safety that also fully comply with the Constitution.
Media Queries:
Jandré Bakker
Head of Communication: Department of Transport and Public Works
Email: Jandre.Bakker@westerncape.gov.za