HARARE - The Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe (TSCZ) has deployed 14 teams of traffic officers along the major highways to educate the public on road safety.
TSCZ spokesperson Enerst Muchena told the Daily News that the campaign, being run in partnership with the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP), will run over the Easter Holiday.
“TSCZ and ZRP have a mandate to educate people and raise awareness on road safety issues,” Muchena said. “We have deployed 14 teams across the country which have been on the road since April 14 and finish the campaign on the 19th.
“Yesterday, they started their campaign in the evenings from 2 pm until 10 while targeting those who travel at night.
“We have got teams on the major highways and a permanent team resident in Beitbridge. In Harare, we have one team which is visiting various bus termini around the city as well as undesignated points were majority of the public go to hitch-hike.”
Muchena indicated that travellers would be stopped and informed about any possible hazards on that particular road, particularly sharp curves and bends.
“They are highlighting the dangers of boarding an overloaded vehicle, which may result in tyre blowouts and loss of control of the vehicle,” he said. “There is also education on safety belts and the dangers of not fastening them on the road and the correct use of the device. There are also general safety rules like the prohibition of using a mobile phone while driving.”
He highlighted that in the extreme cases where a commuter omnibus which is supposed to carry 15 people is overloaded, the extra passengers will be made to disembark at the check-point in the interest of public safety.
“We are also educating people on the danger of boarding unregistered vehicles because there is no passenger liability insurance in case of an accident,” he said.
Muchena warned that boarding vehicles at random bus stops also puts people at risk of kidnappers who are targeting undesignated pick-up points where people are either robbed, raped or assaulted.
He said it was an offence to obstruct the road, pavement or thoroughfare under the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act, while flagging a lift and if caught one is liable to pay a fine.