SA ranked most dangerous country to drive in
That is according to the World's Safest and Most Dangerous Roads report, by driver-education platform Zutobi.
Factors making roads risky include human error, poor infrastructure, vehicle defects, and weather conditions.
Provinces like Kwazulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape have proven how dangerous the weather can be, and it's made worse by roads filled with potholes and other defects.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
eNCA
10-07-2025
- eNCA
SA ranked most dangerous country to drive in
JOHANNESBURG - South Africa has been ranked as the most dangerous country to drive in, for the second year running. That is according to the World's Safest and Most Dangerous Roads report, by driver-education platform Zutobi. Factors making roads risky include human error, poor infrastructure, vehicle defects, and weather conditions. Provinces like Kwazulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape have proven how dangerous the weather can be, and it's made worse by roads filled with potholes and other defects.
The South African
10-05-2025
- The South African
South Africa's drivers ranked WORST in the world
South Africa has been ranked the most dangerous country for drivers for the second consecutive year, according to a global report by driver education platform Zutobi. Out of 53 countries assessed, South Africa placed last , raising serious concerns among transport authorities and road safety experts. The annual study evaluated nations on various safety indicators including road fatality rates, seatbelt usage, highway speed limits, and legal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) levels. Norway secured the top spot as the safest driving country, followed by Iceland and Japan. South Africa's overall safety score dropped to a concerning 2.88 out of 10, reflecting stagnation – or even regression – in efforts to curb road deaths. Alarmingly, the country reported the highest rate of alcohol-related road fatalities in the world, with 57.5% of deaths linked to alcohol consumption, despite having a BAC limit of 0.05%. Seatbelt compliance is another area of concern, with only 31% of South Africans reportedly wearing seatbelts in the front seat. This stands in stark contrast to countries like France, where usage is nearly universal at 99.4%. Additional risk factors include the country's national highway speed limit of 120km/h – high by global standards – and poor compliance with road laws, particularly among informal taxi drivers. Corruption within metro police forces, failing infrastructure, and lack of reliable public transport also continue to undermine road safety. Experts point to the need for stronger enforcement, improved driver education, and urgent investment in infrastructure. Currently, poorly maintained roads, limited signage, and inadequate lighting contribute to a dangerous driving environment, particularly in rural areas. While countries like Norway have achieved success through strict law enforcement, advanced infrastructure, and widespread public awareness campaigns, South Africa faces a crisis of confidence in both its road system and those tasked with maintaining it. Authorities are being urged to take immediate, coordinated action to reverse the trend and protect the lives of road users. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Daily Maverick
07-05-2025
- Daily Maverick
After the Bell: Road safety and the limits of legislation — why enforcement and culture matter
It's something of a curiosity why SA, which has very strict rules on drunk driving, seat belts and speeding, doesn't seem to be making progress in making the roads safer. The biggest problem with driving in South Africa is that local drivers tend to regard traffic rules as suggestions rather than laws. In a lot of places in SA, particularly taxi drivers don't even rise to that level of mental attitude, and you can see that by the way taxi drivers don't even slow down for red robots late at night. The result is a huge number of deaths on the road. South Africa's road fatality rate is one of the worst in the world, at about 26 per 100,000, compared with Brazil at 15.6 and the world average of 17. The real killer weekend is, of course, Easter, although this year the death rate declined substantially. The 167 deaths recorded was the lowest number in the past three years, representing a 46% decline from 2024. Unfortunately, this might have been a bit fortuitous since the number of Easter deaths is very variable, and 2024 was a particularly bad year, so the base was high. The 2025 result was actually a bit higher than 2022, when 162 people died. In 2018, there were a shocking 510 deaths. Recently, an organisation called Zutobi, an online driver education platform, published a report which said SA had, in fact, the most dangerous roads to drive on in the world. The report doesn't only use motor accident deaths, it also includes in its rankings seat belt usage rates, maximum speed limits and the number of accidents involving alcohol. The fact-checking website AfricaCheck slightly got on its high horse about these stats, pointing out that the survey includes only 53 countries, heavily weighted towards developed countries. The World Bank actually has a more comprehensive list, although it's now a bit dated. In this list, SA's road accident mortality rate is listed at 22 per 100,000, and puts SA more or less in the middle. The 22 per 100,000 figure is comparable with countries at a similar economic level. Africa Check quotes Dr Lee Randall, an independent researcher on road safety and co-founder of the Road Ethics Project, as saying, 'The surveys are not scientifically sound. They [Zutobi] do not explain how they selected the countries they analysed, and don't justify why they are based on a sample which is heavily skewed towards high-income and upper-middle income countries and omits every single low-income country in the world.' Ok, you know, nobody wants to be listed as the worst in the world when you are not. But the problem is that Zutobi doesn't score countries by the death rate only, but by things such as road traffic deaths attributed to alcohol. And by this measure, SA is just terrible: almost double the rate of the second-worst country on the list, which is Ireland. South Africa's death rate is not only high because of high levels of drunk driving, but also because of a large number of pedestrian deaths. In the most recent results, for example, the Western Cape reported 22 road deaths over the Easter weekend, and of these fatalities, 14 were pedestrians, five were passengers, two were drivers and one was a motorcyclist. It does suggest that SA's education programmes about dangerous driving should also be aimed at pedestrians. The good news is that the World Bank figures suggest that road accident deaths are declining around the world. In developed countries, they almost don't exist. Sweden had two motor accident deaths in 2019, the World Bank's latest figures show. It's something of a curiosity why SA, which has very strict rules on drunk driving, seat belts and speeding, doesn't seem to be making progress in making the roads safer. SA has been at the bottom of the Zutobi list for the past three years, and before that was second-last. The problem is, of course, as with so many other parts of SA's legal system, enforcement. Anecdotally, I suspect the main problem is also cultural. If you go to a supper party in Europe, for example, it will typically be a subject of conversation on who the designated non-drinker is… and if the designated non-drinker drinks, there is a lot of tut-tutting. That never happens in SA – and it shows. DM
