Motorists found guilty of driving under the influence of alcohol could face a lifetime ban from holding a driving licence under severe new sanctions proposed by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Transport.
After the release of the 2025/26 festive season road safety statistics, the Committee has called for urgent legislative intervention to curb road fatalities and endorsed a “zero-tolerance” approach to alcohol consumption.
While Transport Minister Barbara Creecy led the move to amend the National Road Traffic Act to prohibit any alcohol consumption for drivers, the Portfolio Committee has gone a step further regarding punishment.
In a statement, Committee Chairperson Donald Selamolela emphasised that current deterrents are insufficient and that “decisive action is required”.
“Liability should be placed where necessary, and transgressing drivers should face stiff sanctions, including being banned from ever having a licence to drive,” Selamolela stated.
The call for lifetime bans follows alarming data released by the Department of Transport. While road fatalities saw a slight decrease of 5% over the festive season, alcohol-related enforcement statistics revealed a different crisis.
Minister Creecy reported a 144% increase in drivers testing positive for alcohol compared to the previous year, with 8,561 drivers testing positive out of 173,695 tested.
“It has become clear that driving under the influence of alcohol has reached alarming levels, resulting in unnecessary loss of life,” Selamolela said, noting that the Committee may not have exercised “sufficient rigour” in its oversight role in the past.
Currently, drivers convicted of drunk driving face fines ranging from R2,000 to R120,000, prison sentences of up to six years, and potential licence suspension or a criminal record. However, the Committee argues that the perception of roads as “sites of non-compliance” where police “look away” must end.
The government intends to amend Section 65 of the National Road Traffic Act to scrap the current legal blood-alcohol limits, which are 0.05g per 100ml for ordinary motorists and 0.02g for professional drivers, and replace them with a total prohibition.
In 2022, the Portfolio Committee rejected a similar proposal, but they have now aligned with the Minister, warning that without urgent changes, high fatality figures are likely to persist into the upcoming Easter period.
Reaction to stricter enforcement has also shifted within the civil sector. The Automobile Association (AA), which initially opposed a zero-alcohol limit on the grounds that it might unfairly criminalise drivers with trace amounts of alcohol from medication, has backtracked. The AA is now calling for a “comprehensive zero-tolerance policy” coupled with stricter penalties for offenders.
Minister Creecy has stated that the current law allowing drivers to consume a certain amount of alcohol before driving is “unacceptable” and “outdated”. While she has not provided a specific timeline for the legislative amendments, the Committee has urged the department to introduce the mechanisms “with urgency”.
