Pretoria - The Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality has announced on Tuesday that they will be giving a special reprieve for Pretoria motorists with old outstanding traffic fines.
"From Monday, 16 February 2009 a 50 percent discount will be given to motorists on all outstanding traffic fines that were issued by the Tshwane Metropolitan Police between 1 September 2005 and June 2008," said the Member of the Mayoral Committee responsible for Community Safety, Councillor Dikeledi Lehobye.
She said this offer will be valid until the last working day of May 2009, so that transgressors can be given the opportunity to align their personal budgets with the expected expenditure.
Despite this rebate, she said, metro police members will effectively continue to enforce the rules of the road and motorists who ignored this opportunity will be served with summons and will have to pay the whole traffic fine.
"The municipality has come to this conclusion because there were a lot of outstanding traffic fines and the city wanted to encourage motorists to be responsible and pay their fines."
The discounts, however, will not be applicable to fines imposed due to contempt of court.
Strategic Executive Director, Commissioner Mpho Mmutle said contempt of court was a separate fine (currently set at R300) for not adhering to a summons to appear in court.
He highlighted that the municipality has no jurisdiction in respect of any reduction of such fines.
"Traffic fines issued in terms of the Criminal Procedures Act after 1 July 2008 also do not qualify for the 50 percent discount," he said.
Commissioner Mmutle affirmed that fines issued in terms of Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences qualify for a 50 percent discount if paid within 32 days.
