Bylaws Ignored: Newcastle Meeting Exposes Gaps in Traffic and Vagrant Control

The Newcastle Municipality’s bylaws and the rampant reckless driving along Victoria and Impala Roads have ignited examination following a public meeting orchestrated by the Newcastle South African Police Services (SAPS) and the Newcastle Community Policing Forum (CPF).

Held at Drakensberg Primary School, the gathering attracted a select contingent of residents from Amiel Park, Hutten Heights, Pioneer Park, Aviary Hill, Signal Hill, Schuinshoogte, and Sunnyridge, who pressed police, traffic, and CPF officials on safety and security matters impacting their neighbourhoods.

Though attendance was sparse, the atmosphere crackled with urgency as community members sought decisive responses from those entrusted with addressing the entrenched social issues plaguing these suburbs. A focal point of contention was the hazardous conduct of drivers along Victoria and Impala Roads, where collisions have become a near-weekly occurrence.

“People travel along these two roads at high speeds, they overtake on the barrier lines. With the number of businesses operating along Victoria, it is extremely difficult to pull out of roads such as Goodwin Street and onto Victoria Road, because these staff members also ignore the traffic rules by crossing the barrier lines as they please and making it hard for other motorists to travel safely,” said one irate resident, who underscored the glaring absence of traffic officers enforcing order on these troubled thoroughfares.

Traffic officials at the meeting pledged immediate action, announcing plans to target errant drivers disrupting Victoria and Impala Roads.

“We have new machines for speeding and our management will ensure that traffic officers are allocated to hotspots, such as Victoria Road. However, we do have an issue with community members who hamper our efforts to enforce traffic regulations,” noted the municipal traffic officer present.

He elaborated that two weeks prior, officers established a speed trap to bolster road safety, only for the initiative to falter when residents broadcast warnings via WhatsApp groups, alerting drivers to the officers’ position at the intersection of Impala and Victoria Roads.

“We can only address this issue if the community allows us to be able to actually make an example of an offending motorist, without warning people where we are standing. We need residents to come to the table as well when it comes to traffic enforcement,” said the officer.

Although no additional concrete measures were proposed to curb speeding on these problematic routes, this is not the first instance of scrutiny for Victoria and Impala Roads. In March 2024, Newcastillian News reported that paramedics frequently attend to severe collisions here, with the Newcastle Municipality attributing the incidents primarily to reckless driving rather than a shortage of traffic personnel.

To read more, click here.

As residents demanded clarity on efforts to curb speedsters, another pressing issue emerged: the growing presence of vagrants affecting Amiel Park, Hutten Heights, Pioneer Park, Aviary Hill, Signal Hill, Schuinshoogte, and Sunnyridge.

Residents reported that beggars at intersections have begun occupying vacant homes and sleeping outside properties, amplifying safety concerns.

Frustration boiled over when it became evident that some police officers were unaware of bylaws prohibiting such activities. Sergeant Zwane, assigned to sector 4 encompassing these suburbs, responded, “If community members see these individuals begging at the intersection, tell them to go away, as we cannot do much as there is no bylaws which stops them from being there.”

This statement provoked swift backlash, as residents and traffic officials countered that the bylaws explicitly forbid such conduct—a regulation in effect since the Municipality enacted them in early 2024, complete with fines and sentencing endorsed by the local magistrate and reinforced through SAPS workshops. SAPS representatives floundered in justifying their enforcement lapses, with one officer attempting to deflect responsibility to the municipality.

Traffic officials refuted this, stating, “We have arrested and charged a number of these vagrants, as well as other bylaw offenders, but the problem is, the moment the vagrants are released, they return to their spots, as they know the community will continue giving them food and money, despite the danger their presence on the roads hold,” explained a representative from the Newcastle Municipality’s traffic department.

The traffic officer continued, “The Newcastle Municipality cannot be held liable for everything, the public also has its part to do, and people cannot complain about the danger these vagrants have on the roads, while still encouraging them at the same time.”

Scrutiny then shifted to tuckshops along Amethyst and Coronation Roads, which residents accused of serving as fronts for illicit alcohol and drug transactions, fuelling a surge in local crime. “There are always groups of young men sitting outside these tuckshops and they are causing a lot of trouble, and something needs to be done to resolve this problem before it gets worse,” said an irate resident.

With no actionable resolutions presented for reckless driving, vagrants, or the tuckshops implicated in suspected drug sales, Sergeant Mazibuko of the Amajuba District SAPS issued a call to his colleagues while appealing for community patience.

“We need to work hand in hand with each other, especially the SAPS and the Municipality, as this is our problem, it is not the community’s problem as we are supposed to be sorting this out,” he emphasised. Moreover, he announced that SAPS would intensify its efforts to enforce the bylaws and urged residents to report violations immediately to enable prompt police action.

Mazibuko further addressed encounters with unhelpful personnel: if confronted with what he termed “arrogant officers” who refuse assistance or exhibit rude and unresponsive behaviour—whether via phone or in person—he stressed the importance of reporting them promptly to allow SAPS to take corrective measures and rebuild public confidence.

“The community is the eyes and ears of the police, and if they have issues, they should go to the SAPS management or look at the CPF to guide them to the correct channels. If we fail our community, it will take years to rebuild the perceptions around law enforcement,” explained Sergeant Mazibuko, resolute in fostering collaboration between law enforcement and attendees.

While some residents expressed disappointment over the absence of immediate solutions to reckless driving, bylaw enforcement gaps, and the drug trade linked to certain tuckshops, law enforcement officials assured they would formulate strategies and establish a clear course of action at the next community meeting, with details to be communicated to the public at the appropriate juncture.

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