Pedestrian knocked over on Beyers Naude

The sight of pedestrians walking on the road seem to be a permanent feature on Beyers Naude close to Zandspruit Informal settlement, according to road safety officials. Chris Nicholls of Vital Med Ambulance Service told the Northsider that sometimes pedestrian walking on freeways leads to a number of pedestrian vehicle accidents. Nicholls explained that they frequently attend to accidents at the very same spot where a pedestrian was knocked over by a vehicle on 29 March.

A man was knocked over by a vehicle while walking on Beyers Naude. The man sustained injuries and was sent to Helen Joseph Hospital for further medical attention. The female motorist who hit the pedestrian was too traumatised to speak to the Northsider about what happened.

One of the motorist Modise Mphuthi who saw what happened, said pedestrians roam the road as they please. “People just walk as if this is an unused road, they walk slowly when crossing the road and bear in mind that Beyers Naude is a busy and major road,” explained Mphuthi.

Another motorist Jan Van der Merwe said he failed to understand why the pedestrians choose to walk on the road. “The government has built them a beautiful pedestrian bridge to ensure that they cross the road safely but I’ve never seen a single person walk up there. They just choose to walk in the busy road.”

Spokesperson for Metro Police Edna Mamonyane, said they are unable to enforce the law to make sure that pedestrians adhere to road traffic rules. “The only thing we able to do is to arrest them for public drinking and drunkeness.”