The objectives of the RTMC Act, (Act. No, 20 of 1999) are:
| (a) |
Effecting the pooling of road traffic powers of the Minister and every MEC, and the resources of national and provincial spheres of government responsible for road traffic management, in support of enhanced cooperative and coordinated road traffic strategic planning, regulation, facilitation and law enforcement. |
| (b) |
Strengthening national and provincial governments collective capacity to govern road traffic through partnerships with local government bodies and the private sector, and |
| (c) |
Focusing government of effective strategic planning, regulation, and facilitation and monitoring. |
Each traffic law enforcement authority must develop the capacity to execute traffic law enforcement functions in an evidence-based manner. The development of the plans specified hereunder allows authorities to focus extensively on the main accident causative factors and to adopt and intelligence-led approach to traffic policing practices.
1.1 Strategic plan
| (a) |
The head of a traffic of a law enforcement authority shall be responsible for the development of a three-year strategic plan. |
| (b) |
The strategic plan shall be revised annually to provide for new developments, etc. |
| (c) |
The Corporation shall provide all traffic law enforcement authorities with a planning process cycle to ensure coordination and compliance with national, provincial and local priorities. |
| (d) |
The strategic plan shall be signed off by the head of department and Member of the Executive Council (MEC) or the Municipal Manager and applicable Member of the Mayoral Committee and must be submitted to the Corporation three months before the start of the authority’s financial year (e.g. provincial traffic law enforcement authorities submit in January and metropolitan and municipal traffic law enforcement authorities submit in April of each year). |
| (e) |
The format of the strategic and annual tactical plans shall be as prescribed periodically by the Corporation. |
| (a) |
A tactical plan must be developed annually by the head of traffic of a traffic law enforcement authority and must include appropriate prioritised interventions that focus on identified road accident risk factors. |
| (b) |
The plan must be submitted to the Corporation three months before the start of the authority’s financial year (e.g. provinces submit in January and metropolitan and municipal traffic law enforcement authorities submit in April). |
| (c) |
The format of the operational plan shall be as determined periodically by the Corporation. |
| 1.3 |
Operational plans based on road safety interventions and priorities |
| 1.3.1 |
A traffic law enforcement authority must utilise the following information in planning its law enforcement activities, but not limited to: |
| (a) |
Accident data to determine high frequency accident locations – (historic data); |
| (b) |
Offence rate data and trends – data obtained from periodic traffic surveys—(current data); |
| (c) |
Enforcement data such as the number and type of prosecutions instituted, |
| (d) |
Roadside vehicle check reports and notices issued; |
| (e) |
Staff deployment data such as hours worked; |
| (f) |
Time spent on patrol various patrol activities; |
| (g) |
Kilometres travelled; |
| (h) |
Other information such as public complaints, traffic incidents, road infrastructure reports; and |
| (i) |
Staff performance and resources available. |
| 1.3.2 |
Analysis and planning |
| (a) |
Each traffic law enforcement authority must use the information in 1.3.1 above as evidence to identify and prioritise the need for appropriate law enforcement interventions at the highest frequency accident locations; the days and times when most accidents occur as well as the main accident causative offences. |
| (b) |
The deployment practices of each traffic law enforcement authority must be consistent with such an evidence-based approach to minimise accident risks and to optimise the utilisation of scarce law enforcement resources. |
| (c) |
The scheduling of activities must be aligned to national and provincial programs that may be introduced from time to time. |
| (d) |
Traffic law enforcement authorities must, as far as possible align their tactical and operational plans to the stated national goals and objectives of the following: |
• 2011 – 2020 United Nations Decade of Action Plan
• The National Road Safety Strategy
• National Road Traffic Law Enforcement Strategy and Deployment Model
• The National 365 Road Safety Framework
• The National Road Traffic Law Enforcement 24/7 Shift Policy
| (e) |
Analysis and planning shall be performed in terms of the processes as prescribed from time to time by the Corporation; |
| (f) |
The Chief of Traffic shall coordinate strategic planning sessions and must develop, approve and circulate process flows with clear timelines. |
| (g) |
The Chief of Traffic shall lead the setting of national targets in consultation with provincial traffic law enforcement authorities. |
| (h) |
National customised targets must be part of the Annual Performance Plans (APP’s) of all traffic law enforcement authorities. |
| (i) |
Additional national targets can be set for provinces outside this planning process as and when required to achieve an ad-hoc objective. |
| (j) |
The Corporation must provide statistical accident data to each traffic law enforcement authority to enable the authority to plan its activities based on evidence as contemplated in 1.3.1 herein above. |
| (k) |
The Corporation shall assist where appropriate, those traffic law enforcement authorities that request or lack the capacity to plan and develop operational plans. |
| 1.3.3 |
Joint structure approach |
| (a) |
A National Joint Operations Structure will be established to maximize the impact of intervention units and the planning of enforcement activities and selected events. |
| (b) |
The Chief of Traffic shall establish the national steering committee (NRSSC) to oversee and assist provincial coordinating structures. (PRSCS) |
| 1.3.4 |
Submission of plans to the Corporation |
| (a) |
Each province shall submit to the Chief of Traffic: |
| (i) |
Integrated strategic and tactical plans signed off by the Head of Department or designated official in the format as prescribed from time to time; |
| (ii) |
Consolidated provincial monthly and quarterly operational plans signed off by the Head of Department or designated official in the format approved before the commencement date of the plan to facilitate the collation of information on the identified interventions. |
| (iii) |
Consolidate monthly list of activities and specific enforcement interventions; |
| (iv) |
Integrated projects signed off by the Head of Department or designated official as specified; and |
| (v) |
Progress reports signed off by the Head of Department or designated official as prescribed from time to time. |
| (b) |
The traffic law enforcement authority shall maintain records of all its operational plans and the results derived from the enforcement activities emanating from the implementation of these operational plans. |
| (a) |
The Corporation may periodically request road traffic law enforcement authorities to submit reports in a manner determined, which reflects the progress made with the implementation of the authority’s strategic, tactical and operational plans. |
| (b) |
Transversal indicators are road traffic law enforcement activities that must be performed by all authorities to determine uniformity in the implementation of identified law enforcement activities. Transversal indicator reports shall be submitted quarterly by provinces to monitor compliance and impact thereof. |
Statistics Act, 1999
