Cape Town traffic dept gearing up for Easter long weekend operations

CAPE TOWN - With just three weeks before the Easter weekend, the focus on road safety has already begun.

Cape Town’s traffic department says all their officers were ready for the next long weekend.

Last week, Transport Minister Barbara Creecy launched the national Easter road safety campaign.

She said last year’s December road death toll highlighted the shortcomings in its road safety plans.

More than 500 people died in a total of 439 road accidents over December last year.

Cape Town Traffic spokesperson, Maxine Bezuidenhout, said they were also gearing up for the Easter long weekend.

"On the roads, we will be rolling out Operation Exodus, which offers free vehicle safety checks to long-distance public transport operators. Another element to Operation Exodus is vehicle checkpoints in and around areas where public transport interchanges are situated to check for driver and vehicle fitness."