Revealed: what I want for Christmas

So, we have come to the end of what has been a somewhat ghastly year. And, as the festive season has come upon us, I’ve drawn up a list of what I want for Christmas (hint: it’s unlikely that my wishes will be granted…)

This time last year, I wrote about 2020 – and I described it as a truly lousy year. I’m not going to do the same this time around. Honestly, it’s been yet another rotten year. I don’t wish to relive its horrors. Instead, I’ve decided to be positive – and draw up a Christmas wish list. These are my six wishes:

A reduction in road fatalities in South Africa

I would love to see fewer people die on South African roads (and indeed on roads all over the world). Our road safety record is dismal. In fact, research by Zutobi reveals that South Africa is the most dangerous country in the world in which to drive. This situation is intolerable. Road users need to start acting responsibly and police need to focus on proper law enforcement instead of collecting bribes.

Truck drivers who take road safety seriously

Generally speaking, I believe that our truck drivers do an outstanding job (for which they receive little if any recognition). However, there are some rogue drivers out there who blatantly disregard the rules of the road. The consequences can be dire: people can die. Truck drivers can also find themselves in a mire of legal trouble. Recently, a law firm in the United States obtained an $18,15 million (roughly R290 million) verdict on behalf of a brain-damaged teenager struck by a truck on September 27, 2016. Gustavo Cornejo was standing on the side of the road fixing his vehicle. A truck tractor hit Cornejo, hurling him nine metres in the air. He struck his head and suffered severe brain injuries as well as broken ribs and vertebrae – and he will require care for the rest of his life.

A reduction in fuel-related taxes and tariffs

The ridiculously high cost of fuel is killing our economy. Some factors – the price of Brent crude, for instance – are beyond our control. But government could ease the woes of motorists, transporters and consumers alike by reducing fuel-related taxes and tariffs. This is something that our wonderful columnist Chris Hattingh calls for in this month’s Talking Trade column.

Functional railways

At the end of last month, I travelled on the N3 to Durban to road-test two Iveco Dailys. (You can read all about the results of our test in this issue of FOCUS.) I haven’t been travelling on our country’s roads as much as I used to, and I was aghast at the congestion – largely caused by trucks. I am not pointing fingers at the truck drivers! Without them, we would have nothing to eat or drink! But it reminded me – yet again – that we really need functional railways to supplement our country’s trucking corridors.

Border posts that work

Billions are lost each year because our border posts just don’t work. It doesn’t take rocket science to fix them. Recently, Mike Fitzmaurice, CEO of the Federation of East and Southern Africa Road Transport Associations (Fesarta), travelled to Beitbridge, which had been plagued by massive delays. He “fixed” the border post in two days. Without meaning to detract from Fitzmaurice’s stellar efforts, he used common sense to fix the many problems there. Surely the same can happen throughout southern Africa?

An end to Covid

I know that, much like so many other things, this is wishful thinking. But I simply had to put it on my Christmas list. Too many people have suffered. Too many people have died. It needs to stop now.