By Selloane Ntshonyane
- The Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport started a 60-day amnesty period for scholar transport operators on Sunday, 8 February.
- Vehicles will still be impounded for being unroadworthy, drivers without licences or Professional Driving Permits, or other traffic law violations.
The Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport has given scholar transport operators 60 days to get their Operating Licences sorted.
The amnesty period started on Sunday, 8 February.
During this time, authorities will not impound vehicles that don’t have a valid Operating Licence.
However, Gauteng transport MEC Kedibone Diale-Tlabela said operators will still face strict action if they break other road and safety rules.
Vehicles can still be impounded if operators use unroadworthy vehicles, drive without a valid driver’s licence or Professional Driving Permit, or break any other traffic laws.
Operators can also be penalised if they don’t have the right paperwork. This includes contracts with parents, signed indemnity forms, or endorsement letters from schools.
Diale-Tlabela said operators should use the 60 days to sort out their papers and make sure they follow all transport rules.
She said the amnesty is not a free pass to ignore safety rules. It is a chance to fix paperwork problems.
The Department of Roads and Transport has asked the Gauteng Department of Education to help during the amnesty.
School principals have been asked to give endorsement letters to operators. This is required by law to properly classify them as scholar transport providers.
Operators must also sign contracts with parents. Parents must sign indemnity forms giving permission for their children to be transported.
Endorsement letters from school governing bodies are also a legal requirement.
These issues were discussed at a Scholar Transport Stakeholder Engagement Session held at Johannesburg City Hall on Sunday.
Close to 900 scholar transport operators attended the meeting.
Pictured above: Scholar transport operator being inspected.
Image source: Supplied
