South African motorists owe billions in traffic fines — these cities and provinces are the worst offenders

South African motorists owe well over R3 billion in outstanding traffic fines across several of the country’s biggest metros and provinces.

That is according to feedback provided to the Sunday Times by various law enforcement authorities and the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC).

Speeding was the most common traffic violation in all jurisdictions that responded to the newspaper.

In the Johannesburg and Tshwane metros, this was followed by fines for faulty vehicle parts and motorists driving with unregistered or unlicensed vehicles.

In Cape Town, the Eastern Cape, Ekurhuleni, Limpopo, Gauteng, and the Northern Cape, not wearing a seat belt was the second most common offence.

The authority with the largest amount in outstanding fines was the City of Ekurhuleni, which includes a large part of eastern Gauteng and town towns like Alberton, Brakpan, Boksburg, Germiston, Kempton Park, and Tembisa.

A spokesperson for the metro told the Sunday Times it was owed R1.6 billion, R665 million of which was racked up in 2023.

The Johannesburg Metro Police Department issued the highest number of fines of any single enforcement authority in 2023 — 3.3 million.

Cape Town most successful in collecting fine revenue

Despite the large quantity, the City of Joburg only generated R46.9 million in revenue from fines during the year, while the City of Cape Town pulled in R163.4 million between January and September 2023.

This figure was substantially higher than in all the other reported jurisdictions.

Cape Town’s MMC for safety and security, JP Smith, attributed this to a dedicated team that tracks down offenders on a top 100 warrant list.

The city’s officers are equipped with handheld devices and automated number plate recognition tech to identify offenders at checkpoints, roadblocks, or during patrols.

Cape Town is also the first city in South Africa to roll out bodycams and dashcams for officers and their vehicles on a large scale.

In August 2023, the city’s mayor, Geordin Hill-Lewis, said more than 800 metro police officers would get bodycams, while over 300 vehicles would be fitted with dashcams in the current financial year.

This rollout forms part of a R860 million safety technology investment in the city to be implemented over three years.

Cape Town MMC for safety and security JP Smith (second to left) and city mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis (far right) with members of the city’s metro police department.

The provincial authority with the highest number of fines in 2023 was Limpopo, which issued 129,800 during the year.

However, it only generated R4.7 million in revenue from fines during 2023. The total amount owed to the province to date is R48.3 million.

Overall, motorists across ten major jurisdictions had outstanding fines of nearly R3.16 billion.

That number excludes amounts owed in other major metros like Mangaung (Bloemfontein) and Ethekwini (Durban), as well as outstanding fines in the provinces of the Free State, Mpumalanga, and North West.

The table below summarises the number of traffic fines issued by ten authorities, how much revenue these authorities generated from fines in 2023, and fines outstanding to date.

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