Drunk drivers convicted in KwaZulu-Natal could soon see their names and photographs published in newspapers.

In a bid to curb the high number of drunk drivers on roads, KwaZulu-Natal transport MEC Willies Mchunu is pushing for a name-and-shame campaign. Details of the campaign have not been finalised, but it would be similar to projects that have succeeded in other parts of the world.

In the United States, Britain and parts of mainland Europe, drunk drivers' names and photographs appear in mass-circulation newspapers and more recently on websites and social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

South Africa's first consistent name-and-shame campaign has been running in Pietermaritzburg for four years.

After a drunk driver killed her 23-year-old son Chas, lead guitarist of the band Plush, in 2005, Caro Smit founded South Africans Against Drunk Driving, which gets names of convicted drunk drivers from courts and publishes them in a newspaper.

"We actually have heard that many people don't want to drive when they are drunk because they do not want to be in the newspaper," Smit said.

"We started the campaign because we learnt that internationally it has worked. We want people to realise that drinking and driving is not a joke and not something to boast about."

Since 2007, Pietermaritzburg has been notorious for its high number of drunk drivers. In five weekends at the end of 2007, 246 drunk drivers were caught in the provincial capital. Last year, 175 drunk drivers were arrested in just one weekend in the city.

Kwanele Ncalane, Transport Department spokesman, said yesterday the city was classified an area of concern, and was monitored closely. "There has been no research into why drivers in Pietermaritzburg continue to drink and drive, but we will not give up on our fight in that area."

But Smit thinks the number of drunk drivers in Pietermaritzburg is no higher than in other cities. The city's committed traffic officers booked more drunk drivers than those of any other city, she said.

"We have more roadblocks and more alcohol testing so more people are arrested," she said.

"In Pietermaritzburg, traffic officers also move their roadblocks every 15 minutes, unlike other cities where the roadblock stays in one area for hours. By that time, you can phone or text your friends to tip them off," she said.

Road Traffic Management Corporation spokesman Ashref Ismail wants name-and-shame campaigns in all provinces.

"We will definitely show support for a campaign like this because 45% of our road fatalities are a result of alcohol abuse," he said yesterday.

"People need to realise it is not socially accepted to drink and drive." - nairn@thetimes.co.za