GEORGE NEWS - During Minister Daylin Mitchell's visit to the Garden Route, he thanked traffic officers at the George Provincial Traffic Centre for their service to the community.

The following figures emerged from last week's work:

• The Provincial Traffic Services implemented a total of 172 integrated roadblocks, vehicle checkpoints and speed control operations across the province and stopped and checked 19 228 vehicles.

• A total of 203 speeding offences were recorded and 3 275 fines were issued for traffic violations ranging from driver to vehicle fitness in the total amount of R3 007 200.

• Forty vehicles were impounded and 53 were discontinued for not being roadworthy. The highest speed recorded was 160km/h in a 120km/h zone.

• Four charges were laid under the Disaster Management Act and fines to the total value of R8 500 were issued. A total of 43 arrests were made for various offences under the National Road Traffic Act, Criminal Procedure Act, and Disaster Management Act regulations. These include the arrest of 19 people for driving under the influence of alcohol.

• A total of 16 crashes occurred in the reporting period, and 17 fatalities were recorded: two drivers, four passengers and 11 pedestrians.

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