The City of Cape Town’s six new “spy cars” arrested 35 motorists on their first day of operation.The cars joined 34 “ghost squad” vehicles on Cape Town’s roads on Wednesday.
The spy cars, fitted with Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras, were introduced as part of an “Operation Reclaim” roadblock on the Stellenbosch arterial route near Blackheath.
Traffic spokeswoman Merle Lourens said the spy cars helped officers arrest 35 drivers for a range of offences.
A further 23 warrants of arrests were issued for fines totalling R681 000.
Motorists also coughed up a total of R7 250 in fines using the new instant-pay systems. The new system allows motorists to pay fines over the counter (cash, cheques and postal orders) at City of Cape Town cash and housing offices, municipal courts and traffic centres.
Fines can also be paid at all Absa branches and post offices; at ATMs (for Absa clients only); on the internet; by cellphone, via an application called Pocit which can be downloaded; and at roadblocks, using cash, cheques, postal orders and credit and debit cards.
Previously motorists could only pay for fines at their local traffic department or municipal court.
Drivers who want to pay overdue fines or have them reduced can visit various municipal courts.
I think this is brilliant - and about time that our traffic police started using technology to keep us safer on the roads. ANPR is an awesome idea - hope they introduce it here in Gauteng as well. Nice post - thanks.
They already have. You’ll find it at your friendly neighbourhood roadblock. If there’s an outstanding warrant for a traffic offence, the system emits a bone-jarring whoop, whereupon at least six Metro officers will pounce on you, demanding instant payment.
You’ll also find ANPR with the soon-to-be-introduced automated motorway tolling system, which will use prepaid e-tags that are matched to the vehicle’s registration plate whenever you pass under one of the many gantries that are being built across the motorways at various strategic locations. These gantries incorporate ANPR and automatically deduct the toll amount from your prepaid e-tag account whenever you pass under them. If you’ve run out of credit or your car’s registration doesn’t match the e-tag, you’ll be pulled over.
At least, that’s the idea. It’ll probably work decently well seeing as there are vast sums of money to be made from it… :
'Luthon64
i have no love for the traffic department at the moment
i need to do my car licence, which is still licenced in the freestate.
so in order to renew my licence, i have to change my address. which would be fine, but they want a proof of residence.
which allso would be fine, but i rent, and dont get water and lights accounts, and since i live in stokkiesville, i dont get mail to my home address.
so, they dont accept my lease, they dont accept the invoice from my landlord, or my payslip, which all shows my physical address.
they want an affidavit from my landlord, saying i stay where i do.
which they wont get, because he doesnt live in this country.
and the response from the woman behind the counter is :‘not my problem’
GCG, drop by your bank, explain to them that you need a FICA document from them - it basically states your adress and contact details on it, and it serves as a confirmation that you hold a banking account with them, just take your ID with and one of those docs you just mentioned (your lease will be fine). We accidently found ourselves in the bank last weekend to increase our withdrawal limits and got ourselves a “nice” customer services clerk who got chatty and ended up helping us in more ways than one. She issued us this document and the S/O could RICA with it. Maybe this will help?
problem is, firstly, with the people at the traffic department’s attitude, they simply wont think further than their nose is long, and they propably wont even recognise the fica document at all.
secondly, the documents i used to Fica, they refused. when i said, that the back accepted these she told me very plainly ‘we are not the bank’
so as good as that idea sounds, im simply going to fake docs now.
The Metro cops can’t just do as they please. You are presumed innocent until you either admit guilt or are proven guilty in a court of law. Most traffic “fines” would be thrown out of a court of law. Most South Africans are unaware of their rights under law and this is why they are abused ny the cops. Here are the rules at a roadblock:
INFORMATION NOTICE TO SAVRALA MEMBERS The information below was e-mailed to one of our members and is being shared with you. Until we resolve our legal issues related to Traffic Fines and the arresting of car rental companies proxies, please can you notify your staff and proxies of this information supplied below:- ______________________________________________________________ ROADSIDE ARREST ON OUTSTANDING FINES The LAW SOCIETY OF SA has currently appointed a group of attorneys to deal with this flagrant transgression of the law; for further info on which attorney are taking on cases like these, please call Hester Bezuidenhout 012 338 5872 who will assist.Know your rights
The traffic/metro police are doing random roadblock checks. They will also feed
your registration into a computer that will show up if you have any outstanding
fines. Know your rights.If you get stopped for outstanding traffic fines - really important for all drivers:
Make sure that everybody gets this message.The Jhb Metro Police, Cape Town Metro Police and other traffic cops have
recently developed the nasty habit of locking people up for unpaid fines. These
road blocks are typically only happening in and around more affluent areas where
their “hit rate” will be higher on traceable entities, with more “fixed” abodes when,
as we all know, primary daily offenders in their mini buses literally get away with
murder because the cops are too scared to root them out of the townships, or the
justice system has no means of putting them over a barrel like the majority of
“soft” citizens.PRESIDENT: MS SHERL CAMERA. VICE PRESIDENT: MR PAUL PAUWEN.
CAR RENTAL SECTION: CHAIRPERSON - MR MARTIN LYDELL. VICE CHAIRPERSON – MR LANCE SMITH
LEASING SECTION: CHAIRPERSON – MR ROSS RICHARDS. VICE CHAIRPERSON – MR BYRON CORCORAN
GENERAL MANAGER (CAR RENTAL SECTION) - MRWAYNE DUVENAGE.The Southern African Vehicle Renting and Leasing Association
c/o P O Box 84624, Greenside, 2034
Web site: www.savrala.co.zaThey can only arrest you if:
They have the original warrant for your arrest there with them. A copy
isn’t good enough, saying it’s at the station isn’t good enough either. They
have to show it to you there and then (if they have it, check plan “b”).They have to prove that you received the summons in person. It either
had to be delivered to you in person or you had to collect a registered letter
from the post office (if they cannot prove you personally received the
relevant summons, the warrant of arrest is not legal either).If you do get stopped and they want to arrest you, demand to see the
warrant and proof you received the summons (i.e. your own signature on
the document when delivered to you).If they don’t have it, the arrest is illegal. Refuse to go. If they still arrest
you inform them there and then you will press charges against them
for illegal arrest (record everything that is said to you, as well as the
chronological procedure of events in detail). These details may well stand
you in good stead for a strong case.Technically, if your arrest is illegal, the taking possession of your car by
the police and its driving thereof while you are in custody may also
constitute theft.When you are released, go to the SAPS immediately and lay a charge
against the arresting law body and relevant official.*** MAKE SURE YOU CARRY YOUR DRIVER’S LICENCE WITH YOU!! ***
Copied and supplied to SAVRALA MEMBERS by Wayne Duvenage, General Manager
(SAVRALA) Cell: 0836766203
You have a lease agreement, I presume, which is adequate proof of residence. If they don’t accept it, demand to see the supervisor, and if he doesn’t accept it start taking names and writing to ministers (of politics, not religion) and newspapers. They are forcing you to break the law. Our so-called civil servants are stupid, lazy, incompetent and often drunk. Don’t put up with it.