The national launch date for the Administrative Adjudication of Traffic Offences Act (AARTO) has been pushed back to December 2025, the Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA) has confirmed.

RTIA spokesperson Monde Mkalipi confirmed to IOL that 69 municipalities, throughout the country’s nine provinces, would implement the AARTO system from the beginning of December, with the remaining municipalities set to follow at the beginning of 2026. This follows a week after a previous announcement that the launch would take place in October.

However the controversial demerit points system that is the core feature of AARTO will only come into effect from September 2026 when the new enforcement framework enters its fourth and final phase, Mkalipi confirmed.

The RTIA said service outlets had been created across the country and over 25,000 traffic officers were currently being trained to implement the new system within the confines of the law.

Mkalipi said AARTO would decriminalise minor traffic offences in order to take strain off the courts. Rather than sending summonses to those who failed to pay their fines, which often do not even reach the courts, the new system would encourage compliance by blocking the renewal of vehicle and driving licences for those with outstanding fines.

Motorists who pay their fines within 32 days will receive a 50% discount. If not paid during this initial period, the fine is elevated to RTIA level, where a courtesy letter is sent to remind recipients of their rights. Motorists then have a further 32 days in which to dispute the infringement or transfer it to another driver.

However, once the 64 days are up, an enforcement order may be issued, which blocks transgressors from renewing their licences.

So far this new process has only been applicable to Johannesburg and Pretoria, which formed part of the pilot phase for AARTO, but the new laws will also affect the 69 additional municipalities from December 2025. The RTIA has not named these towns and cities as yet.

How the demerit system works

Every motorist begins with zero demerit points on their driving licence, with different demerit points prescribed for various offences. If a total of 15 points is exceeded, the licence will be suspended for three months for each point over this threshold. These rules also apply to vehicle operator cards.

More than two suspensions will lead to the licence being cancelled altogether, and the driver will then need to redo the entire licensing process, starting with a learner’s licence.

According to previously released information, minor speeding infringements will result in the loss of one to two demerit points, while disobeying a stop sign or robot, or missing one number plate will see two points being deducted.

Although numerous offences will be ‘decriminalised’ under AARTO, such as minor speeding infringements and failure to wear a seatbelt, more serious offences will result in criminal procedures. These include driving under the influence, driving with a suspended licence and ‘excessive’ speeding, in which you exceed the limit by more than 40km/h.

These ‘criminalised’ offences, which will be handled by the courts, will still result in the loss of demerit points, with six deducted in the case of drunk driving, driving with no number plates or failing to stop at an accident.

The AARTO system has been delayed numerous times, with the legislation having been in development since 1998.

It has also faced numerous legal hiccups, culminating in it being declared unconstitutional by the Pretoria High Court in January 2022. This was effectively overturned by the Constitutional Court of South Africa in July 2023, paving the way for its implementation.

However, advocacy organisations such as the Automobile Association (AA) and the Organisation for Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) have challenged and criticised the AARTO system, with the latter initiating the aforementioned 2022 court case.

The AA believes AARTO will not save lives as it is geared towards revenue collection rather than promoting safer roads.

“Introducing legislation will not solve the country’s road safety crisis. This merely creates an impression of action while nothing will change on the ground, where it is needed. As part of our contention, we point to the fact that there is no evidence that the AARTO pilot project saved a single life,” the AA said.

However, the RTIA believes strengthening laws for road traffic compliance was paramount, as research shows that more than 80% of road crashes are a result of human error.

It said the department was moving closer to implementing 24-hour visible traffic law enforcement.

IOL

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