Every year at this time, a certain level of tension arises over the N3 Toll Route. Hundreds of thousands of South Africans start the well-known migration between KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng as schools close and bags are packed. It’s almost routine. However, that is not how the road handles it.
The road safety authorities’ warnings arrived in tandem with the traffic on Friday, June 26, the start of this year’s winter school holidays. The N3 Toll Concession (N3TC), which oversees the 415-kilometer stretch between Heidelberg in Gauteng and Cedara in KZN, acted swiftly to warn drivers. The message was clear: avoid driving after dark if at all possible.
They keep coming back to this startling statistic. About 49% of all collisions on the N3 Toll Route over the previous five years have happened at night. Almost half. When you take into account how many of those collisions involved pedestrians, a variety of vehicle types, serious injuries, and fatalities, it’s possible to read that number without feeling its weight. It’s not just inconvenient to drive on this highway at night. It is quantifiably riskier.
In short, visibility begins to deteriorate as early as 5 p.m. in the winter, according to Thania Dhoogra, chief operating officer of N3TC. The window of safe daylight travel is smaller than most people realize when they’re trying to avoid the Friday afternoon rush, loading the car, and finishing work. Many families are driving into dusk by the time they actually start moving.
On the N3, winter brings a unique set of risks. Reaction times are slowed by cold temperatures. In the valleys surrounding the Midlands, thick mist gathers. With little to no warning, smoke from veld fires and firebreak burning can drastically reduce visibility. The risk profile is significantly altered when driver fatigue is taken into account, particularly on a route that takes several hours to complete. This has nothing to do with alarmism. It’s simply what the data consistently demonstrates.
Additionally, there are roadworks to deal with. The northbound carriageway near Nottingham Road, Midway in KwaZulu-Natal, and near Grootvlei in Mpumalanga, where deep excavations are taking place, currently has single lane closures, according to N3TC. The lane restrictions are still in place, but construction workers won’t be working over the holiday weekend. Road safety officials are particularly concerned about situations where people approach those sections at a high speed, particularly after dark.
During the holiday, there will be more law enforcement officers on the route. The plan includes high-visibility blue light patrols, satellite stations, and interdisciplinary checkpoints. Partners in the Road Incident Management System work nonstop. Although there is a perception that the authorities are doing everything within their power, the truth is that a significant portion of what transpires on that road over the coming weeks will depend on the decisions made by individual drivers.
The useful advice is not difficult. Go early. Steer clear of driving after dark. Before leaving, check the weather and the route. Maintain proper tires, brakes, and lights. Take pauses for rest. Keep the following distances constant. These things seem obvious because they are, but the crash statistics indicate that they are still not widely used.
It’s difficult to ignore how commonplace the warnings have become, given at the beginning of each year’s school holiday season. It is hoped that more people are paying attention to that repetition. In any case, the N3 will be busy. The people operating it still have some control over how busy it will be with incidents.
