WATCH: Capetonian fined R500 for jaywalking: 'This is crazy!'

A Cape Town man was recently fined R500 for jaywalking, after he was stopped by traffic officials for crossing the road without using the designated pedestrian crossing.

In a video posted on social media, Kenneth Brookes took a video of the ticket he received and said, "This is crazy, a traffic official just fined me for jaywalking!"

The video has already raked up over half a million views and counting on TikTok, with several fellow South Africans expressing their disbelief and shock in the comments while others posed the question, "What is jaywalking?"

Digital Content Editor of Primedia Plus Barbara Friedman did some digging, and found that pedestrian lawlessness such as jaywalking is a serious offence.

National Transport Minister Barbara Creecy also reported earlier this year that around 1 502 people died on South African roads during the festive season in 1 234 fatal collisions, with pedestrians accounting for 41% of the total.

Law enforcement authorities also issued 711 184 penalties for traffic violations around the country.

According to the National Road Traffic Act, pedestrians are required to:

- Use marked crossings and sidewalks where available, and
- Avoid crossing within 50 metres of a pedestrian crossing.

"Maybe they were trying to make a point? I don't know. I'm a bit scared because we all do it, don't we?" asks Friedman.

To listen to Barbara Friedman in conversation with Clarence Ford on CapeTalk's Views and News show, click on the audio below: