KZN Transport Dept launches large-scale enforcement operation at weighbridges

The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport has launched a large-scale enforcement operation at weighbridges targeting trucks and undocumented foreign nationals to mark the start of Transport Month.

This intervention is aimed at dealing with overloaded trucks and the presence of undocumented foreign nationals operating illegally in the country.

The department said it's also confronting a deepening mystery of truck drivers who vanish without a trace after major crashes.

Since the start of the operation on Wednesday morning, it has arrested three undocumented foreign nationals in Midway Weighbridge on the N3 highway.

Joining the operation is the Home Affairs Immigration Unit.

The department said over the past few months, at least 200,000 vehicles have been weighed at the province’s weighbridges, of which over 40,000 were overloaded and at least 5,000 were found chargeable.

But it's the disappearance of drivers, many suspected of being undocumented foreign nationals, that's fast becoming the department's biggest concern.

To support the clampdown, 177 newly graduated traffic officers have been deployed across major routes, starting with the N3.

The department said it's also investigating how companies are recruiting drivers, especially those who vanish after collisions.