Calls to ban young drivers from transporting scholars reignite safety debate

The deaths of 14 learners in a crash at Vanderbijlpark two weeks ago have reignited concerns about the safety of scholar transport across the Western Cape.

During a discussion on CapeTalk, the Western Cape MEC for Mobility, Isaac Sileku, suggested amending legislation to prevent younger drivers from transporting schoolchildren, arguing that age may be a risk factor.

“If someone has got the responsibility of transporting the future of this country, you must be at the right age,” Sileku said, noting that the driver involved in the Vanderbijlpark crash was 22.

Existing rules already recognise risk

Current regulations already impose age thresholds for professional driving permits. Drivers transporting goods can qualify from 18, passengers from 21, and dangerous goods from 25, a framework that acknowledges differing levels of risk.

But CapeTalk host Lester Kiewit cautioned against focusing only on age, pointing to past tragedies involving older drivers, including the Blackheath rail crossing crash in 2012, where ten learners were killed. The driver in that incident was 55.

Transporters push back on age limits

South African Scholar Transporters Association secretary-general Sihle Magubane rejected the idea that raising the age limit would solve the problem.

“It’s new to our ears that someone would want to change the age of drivers transporting kids,” she said. “If you are above 18 and have a licence and a PDP, you are driving under the law.”

Magubane warned that tighter age restrictions could also threaten livelihoods in an already fragile sector.

Call for regulation and enforcement

Instead, the association argues that poor regulation is the real issue. Magubane said scholar transport remains largely unregulated, with limited oversight and inconsistent policing.

“We need the government to regulate scholar transporters so that someone is looking after them,” she said. “For now, it’s only policing, and it’s not visible enough.”

She also called for a vehicle scrapping or recapitalisation programme to help operators replace old, unsafe vehicles, adding that enforcement alone would not address profit-driven behaviour on the roads.

The debate continues over whether stricter age limits, better regulation, or stronger enforcement would do more to prevent future tragedies.

For more details, listen to Sileku and Magubane using the audio player below: