Payday is car prang day

Payday - the most anticipated day on the calendar - will never be the same again for Western Cape government employees.

The province has included sobering messages on workers' pay slips about the dangers of drunk driving. This came after officials noted a spike in road fatalities over payday weekends.

Provincial traffic officials released figures yesterday which prove that these weekends have pushed up the road death toll by 23%.

Donald Grant, transport and public works MEC, said August recorded the worst payday weekend this year.

He said an average of 3.6 people were killed on the province's roads every day, but this rose to an average of 6.2 people a day over payday weekends.

"Greater mobility and greater access to alcohol are reflected in spikes in the death rate over payday weekends.

"While further data analysis is required to isolate all of the factors involved, the public is warned to please exercise extra caution over this time," said Grant.

Yasir Ahmed, the chief director of transport regulation, said the Western Cape had the highest number of "drunken driving and drunk pedestrians" nationally.

"We are also looking at shaming convicted drunk drivers by publishing their names in newspapers," Ahmed said.

Kenny Africa, Western Cape traffic chief, said: "Over 80% of all fatalities that occur over weekends, especially at night and in the early hours are due to the fact that people are drunk.

"Every single weekend we test about 10000 motorists for alcohol and we arrest between 20 and 40 drunk drivers."