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The United National Transport Union (UNTU) welcomes the implementation of a truck appointment system at the Port of Durban by Transnet Port Terminals (TPT) to ease the years of complaints of heavy traffic congestion due to the trucks in the area.

Trevor Wasserfall, vice-president of UNTU, who represents most employees working for Transnet, says this system will enhance the service delivery of Transnet to its clients in line with the best practices being used by other big ports globally.

The Port of Durban is considered the heartbeat of import and export facilities in Southern Africa.

But its growth has come with a price: furious motorists in Durban who complain about the 24/7 traffic congestion caused by the trucks standing in a queue to enter the Port. The congested traffic area gets the blame for serious accidents in the area irrespective if a truck was involved or not.

Wasserfall says with the implementation of the new appointment system the truck must plan carefully to make an appointment in advance and stick to the time allocated to them. They can cancel the time allocated to them up to two hours in advance, but if they miss the slot, they will have to reschedule. 

No trucks will be allowed without appointments.

“It will not only ease the traffic but assist with controlling the workflow in the ports which operate 24/7,” he says.

Transnet Executives has recently on various platforms reaffirmed the state-owned enterprise commitment to the South African Government's national development plan to move more goods, commodities, and passengers currently traveling on road to rail.

Wasserfall says UNTU is committed to assisting where it can to turn the dream into a reality for the benefit of the South African economy.

Issued on behalf of UNTU