Latest news with #HighwayLaw
The Citizen
15-05-2025
- The Citizen
Sanral distances itself from fake news report over new speeding laws
Sanral distances itself from fake news report over new speeding laws The widely circulated document with proposed speed reduction laws is false. The South African National Roads Agency SOC Limited (Sanral) distanced itself from the fake 'communique' in a statement yesterday, May 14. Aside from being widely shared on social media, the document had also been picked up by some news organisation. Vusi Mona, SANRAL's General Manager for Communication and Marketing said the department does not have a mandate to change road laws and does not enforce speed limits on national roads. 'SANRAL has a distinct mandate to manage the country's national road network,' said Mona. 'This mandate encompasses the financing, planning, development, improvement, maintenance, and rehabilitation of the national roads, as prescribed by the SANRAL Act of 1998. The SANRAL mandate does not include any enforcement rights, be that related to speed, safety or security.' According to the circulating document, effective from 1 July, Sanral would implement 'Highway Law' with adjusted limits across South Africa's national highway system. Some of the speed limit changes that were to be implemented, per the fake document: • Urban roads reduced from 60km/h to 50km/h. • Rural roads adjusted from 100km/h to 80km/h. • Highways and national routes capped at 110km/h, down from 120km/h. • Heavy vehicles limited to 90km/h on all roads. • School zones to have a strict 30km/h speed limit during school hours. 'We encourage members of the public to contact Sanral's hotline – 0800 204 508 – or email sanral@ if they pick up suspicious information being circulated. We also encourage members of the media to reach out to our press office on pressoffice@ for further clarity,' added Mona. Stay in the loop with The North Coast Courier on Facebook, X, Instagram & YouTube for the latest news. Mobile users can join our WhatsApp Broadcast Service here or if you're on desktop, scan the QR code below. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
IOL News
14-05-2025
- Automotive
- IOL News
Fake news: Sanral not lowering speed limits on SA roads, because it can't
South Africa has no plans to lower speed limits, at present. Image: Newspress If you're concerned that your next trip to Durban will be at a snail's pace, breathe a sigh of relief because the speed limits on South Africa's roads are not being reduced. A statement that circulated on social media recently, claimed that the South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL) was planning to reduce the speed limits on most of the country's roads. While this communication purported to be from Sanral, the roads agency has released a statement confirming that this is a classic case of fake news. 'Sanral has a distinct mandate to manage the country's national road network. This mandate encompasses the financing, planning, development, improvement, maintenance, and rehabilitation of the national roads, as prescribed by the Sanral Act of 1998,' said Sanral's communications head Vusi Mona. 'The Sanral mandate does not include any enforcement rights, be that related to speed, safety or security,' Mona added. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ The fake statement said that Sanral 'Highway Law' would implement adjusted limits across South Africa's national highway system, with the following taking effect: Urban roads reduced from 60 km/h to 50 km/h Rural roads adjusted from 100 km/h to 80 km/h Highways and national routes capped at 110 km/h, down from 120 km/h Heavy vehicles limited to 90 km/h on all roads, and School zones to have a strict 30 km/h speed limit during school hours The bottom line is that the road's agency does not have the power to change speed limits. This needs to be done at a legislative level, and such a move was indeed proposed by the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) in 2022, as well as in earlier years. This would have seen similar limit reductions to the ones mentioned in the fake statement above, with freeway limits reduced to 110km/h and urban speeds to 50km/h. This proposal was ultimately rejected following strong opposition to the move. In order to change the speed limits, the Department of Transport (DOT) must first issue a proposed amendment for comment, which is then published in the Government Gazette. Following a public comment period, the DOT must consider these comments and then decide how to proceed from there. The Automobile Association says that plenty of 'draconian' laws are proposed by the DOT, but few ever become law as they are either rejected outright or watered down at committee level. The AA has previously commented that South Africa's current speed limits are sufficient for enforcing road safety, but better enforcement of the existing laws is needed. 'You can have every road in South Africa and say that you can only travel at 60km/h on it, but we know that even if that would happen, people will still go at 80km/h, 100km/h and 120km/h. People won't necessarily heed what the speed limit is, and the reason for that is that there isn't effective policing of existing speed laws,' the organisation said. Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel IOL
The Citizen
14-05-2025
- Automotive
- The Citizen
Sanral debunks fake speed limit message
POLOKWANE – The South African National Roads Agency SOC Limited (Sanral) has confirmed that a message circulating on social media regarding new speed limits and stricter road laws is fake. The false communique claims that Sanral would be implementing a 'Highway Law' effective July 1, which includes reduced speed limits on urban, rural, and national roads, as well as in school zones and for heavy vehicles. According to the misleading post, urban road limits would drop from 60 km/h to 50 km/h, rural roads from 100 km/h to 80 km/h, and highways from 120 km/h to 110 km/h. It also falsely stated a universal 90 km/h limit for heavy vehicles and 30 km/h near schools during school hours. Sanral spokesperson Vusi Mona dismissed the claims, saying that Sanral's official mandate as outlined in the Sanral Act of 1998, relates strictly to the financing, planning, development, maintenance and rehabilitation of South Africa's national road network. 'Sanral does not have any enforcement rights related to speed, safety, or security,' said Mona. He urged the public to report any suspicious messages to Sanral hotline at 0800 204 508 or email sanral@ At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
