Following the recent Constitutional Court ruling on AARTO, we have been inundated with requests for our popular “AARTO and the impact on your business” training.
 
Although tempting to offer the training now due to popular demand, we have decided to wait until we know exactly when what is going to happen. At this point in time, we are all still awaiting the publication of amended regulations that will be aligned to the AARTO Amendment Act of 2019.
 
On 20 July the Minister of Transport briefed the media and indicated as follows:
 
“We have had the occasion to engage with the Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA) in order to assess our state of readiness for the accelerated rollout of AARTO across all municipalities in the country.  We are pleased that the progress we had made on the eve of the constitutional challenge enables us to target 1 July 2024 for the nationwide rollout of AARTO.  We have already established 43 service outlets across various Provinces. 
 
We have completed requisite processes to implement the AARTO adjudication process as well as the electronic service of infringements.  The latter will come into effect as soon as the President proclaims the AARTO Amendment Act.  
 
We are also ready to finalise our recommendations to the President for the appointment of the Tribunal and the proclamation of the AARTO Act nationwide implementation, as well as the promulgation of the AARTO Amendment Act. 
 
We have also completed the process of drafting regulations and have consulted with the Minister of Justice and all MECs.  We are finalising the matter of concurrence by MECs and have received concurrence from the vast majority of Provinces.  This is a matter we intend to put to bed at the upcoming meeting of the Shareholders Committee, made up of MECs responsible for Transport and traffic matters.
 
We will equally move with speed with the implementation of the points demerit system, an important cornerstone of the AARTO Act, intended to act as a deterrent for wayward motorist behaviour on our roads. 
 
We are pleased that this judgement not only removes the uncertainty that was created by this legal challenge, but enables us to focus on ensuring that our roads are safe for all road users with penalties that will make a telling difference.  The unacceptably high rate of fatalities on our roads is driven by many factors, with driver behaviour being one of the most serious.  We have no doubt that the AARTO Act will make a difference by introducing severe penalties which include attaching movable properties of infringers, putting an end to a culture of impunity.
 
As we proceed with the national rollout of AARTO, we will proclaim implementation in 69 municipalities by the end of this calendar year, while AARTO will kick-in in the remaining municipalities by 1 July 2024.  We are working closely with the Department of Co-operative Government and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) in ensuring that all municipalities have the requisite capacity to implement the law.”
 
Although near, from the above it is evident that there is still some work to be done before AARTO can be rolled out nationally. We will keep our subscribers updated with new developments. In the meantime, readers are invited to add their names to the waiting list for our “AARTO and the impact on your business” training. Simply send an email to aarto@labourguide.co.za.