Durban - The Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) challenged youth to #ClaimYourSpace and make South African roads safer this youth month.
This comes as the country celebrates Youth Month with the theme “Accelerating youth economic emancipation for a sustainable future”.
In a statement, the RTMC called on youth to prioritise safety on the roads to ensure that the country has a sustainable future.
Statistics collected by the RTMC revealed that about half (49.7%) of people who died on the roads in 2022 were youth and young adults aged between 20 and 39 years.
“Youth-related road crashes and injuries constitute a major health challenge and exert a heavy burden on the economy and social infrastructure. Young people between the ages of 20 and 39 years are more likely to die or be injured in a motor vehicle crash and have more motor vehicle crash-related hospitalisation and emergency room visits.”
The statement said the highest number of road fatalities is noticeable among those between the ages of 30 and 39 years.
“A total number of people (all age groups) who died on the roads in South Africa last year is 12 436 which was a 0.8% decline when compared to 12 545 that died the previous year.”
According to the RTMC, young people have been identified around the world as a high-risk group for road safety because they are “inexperienced, and they tend to overestimate their abilities”.
It said their behaviour patterns are strongly associated with expectations and social pressures that promote risk taking.
“Many tend to be strongly oriented towards and are sensitive to peer pressure. They are responsive to their immediate environments where they are limited in self-control, and disinclined to focus on long-term consequences, all of which leads to compromised decision-making skills.”
RTMC said in line with a call by the Global Youth Coalition For Road Safety, young people in South Africa have to claim their space in debates and in shaping policies that are intended to make roads safer.
“To facilitate this, the RTMC, in collaboration with the national Department of Transport, provincial, non-government organisations, institutions of higher education and the private sector will be engaging in advocacy work for the whole month to promote responsible road usage by the youth.
“Seminars, road safety dialogues and exhibitions will be held in all provinces to engage young people in finding solutions to the country’s road safety challenges,” said the RTMC.