Another electricity blackout !!!!!

It is funny if one thinks back just over one year ago when a certain person accidently dropped a certain item into one of the reactor's "critical turbine". It created such a negative impact on Eskom and the security measures in place along with many other occurences over that specific period of time. Then "something" had to be replaced, and that item had to be imported all the way from France. It did eventually get here after quite a long wait, in fact it arrived here approximately July of last year. At the time all the blame was put on the little "mishap". Any rationally thinking person would imagine that as soon as the repair was complete, the system would be up to scratch and running smoothly as was the case before the mishap.

But alas, here we are, receiving informative messages on a regular basis on television, requesting certain household items to be utilised sparingly in order to cut down on electricity and thereby prevent "power shedding" from occurring. This message has obviously not worked as we have only just "started" winter and already we are facing frequent blackouts; what will happen in the middle of winter, when most households attitudes are "to hell with everything" and use heaters and power guzzlers all the more often.

What the people out there do not realize is that the "grid/network" or call it whatever else we want; has rarely ever been upgraded to accommodate so many new additions to the electrical users in the country as a whole. This means that the power is continually running at full capacity, especially in winter when most electricity is used, and at some time it must "give in". It is as simple as that. The system can only take so much punishment and no. more

And guess what, the users of electricity are just increasing by the day as more and more homes are built all over the countryside, yet the infrastructure does not increase in terms of capacity. This does just not make sense.

In my home I have flourescent lights in two rooms and in the REST of the house all light fittings are fitted with energy saver lamps (the lamps that utilise only 20% power of a normal bulb). That change alone has cut down on my electricity account by almost half, which saves me money as well. Just imagine if every person managed to "wake up" and do just that. I am totally convinced that all in all, much power would be saved due to less consumption and therefore less probability of power blackouts. If only ALL PEOPLE would just think about this for a few minutes and do something about the problem. Each person may think, "what difference am I ALONE going to make", but a few million people with the same approach can make a very big difference, that is a certainty.

It would also be expected of the authorities to explore avenues to obtain other means of "fast" implimentation of power plants which can lighten the burden on the bigger plants. It is just plain common sense that if a network is running at two thirds or less capacity (with the assitance of other power plants), versus full capacity, it will most certainly last longer and not create so many problems that are being experienced at present.

Come let us all see if we, EACH ONE OF US, can help to make a difference. It will make a big difference in the bigger picture. Understandably, the energy saver bulbs are expensive (average of R10 per bulb), but they do last 6 years and even longer and that cannot be said of a normal bulb. Even if a few bulbs are purchased per month, it would make a positive difference, even in the short term. Just thinking mathematically, not that I am a drinker or smoker at all; if a person has 12 bulbs to replace in an average house, it would mean sacrificing R120 worth of cigarettes and alcohol, that is certainly not much to give up, just a once off sacrifice. Sounds like a bottle of liquor and 3 packs of cigarettes.

AND DO REMEMBER that whatever any person does to save power consumption, that person is saving on the monthly electricity usage as well, and it therefore means more money available in their pocket, and if they really want to, they can use THAT money to make up for the earlier sacrifice of cigarettes and alcohol.

Lorries in peak hour traffic !!!!

The local traffic authorities and every other person in some sort of authoritive position should perhaps consider the following relating to lorries and big "slow" vehicles travelling on roads, especially highways, during peak hour traffic.

From experience, I have seen and many people have spoken about this exact same issue, that ONE lorry on a highway can AFFECT up to 30 vehicles during peak hours. Just taking a simple fact into consideration; if a lorry pulls away from stand still position, compared to a small car, by the time the small car is shifting to second/third gear, the lorry has more than likely already shifted into 5th/6th gear, it just CANNOT get away quick enough, due to it's size.

Perhaps a road law should be investigated where lorries could be barred from major and minor highways during peak hour traffic in the mornings and afternoons. Peak hour traffic could be considered between 6 and 8 am, and in the afternoons between 4:30 and 6:30 pm.

Anyone can just imagine how the traffic would flow without having all these lorries in the peak hour timeslot. It would certainly be to any small car driver's advantage. IT JUST WOULD WORK.

Simple/Easy method of paying fines !!!!

I visited Madeira, which is a Portuguese Island for those that do not know the place, during June 2006. It is really a small Island but definitely ahead of this big country in regards to traffic offences and administration. My cousin would, every single time we entered his vehicle, ask me to buckle up. When I asked for the specific reason he confirmed that a fine without a buckle on that little Island is 500 euros, translated into our currency ± R5000. That is a lot of money. The issue is not the amount of the fine but the way in which the fine is paid. UNLIKE SOUTH AFRICA, they are not issued a fine, which fine is followed up in a couple of weeks with a reminder to pay the fine, then followed up again (if it does not get lost in the system) in another few weeks, and after a few follow-ups, the person receives a summons, in which he/she has to appear in court at a specific date, to offer sometimes poor excuses as to why the fine was not paid in time.

In Madeira it is actually quite simple and in my personal opinion, very very effective. The person commiting the traffic offence hands over, ON THE SPOT, his/her credit card, and the fine is deducted off their credit card. NOW THAT WOULD MOST CERTAINLY WORK IN SOUTH AFRICA, where no person could "get away" with not paying a fine. Just look and listen to the staggering figures provided on the odd occasion, regarding outstanding fines to traffic authorities all over the country. Then it is further confirmed that no person would be able to renew their annual vehicle licences without paying outstanding fines. FUNNY how everyone seems to renew their licences with no mention of outstanding fines and nothing shown on the traffic system. The system is not efficient in this regard, or so it seems.

WHY NOT try this payment method in South Africa. It most certainly would work for the traffic authorities. They would not have to go from door to door to deliver summons letters, sometimes even entering area where it can be life threatening. The only people who would ALWAYS fight against this type of payment would be those individuals that DO NOT WANT TO, OR HAVE NEVER PAID FINES.

Getting straight to the point, I am of the opinion that all SA drivers, especially taxi drivers, would be more careful of transgressing the law, if we were all made to pay our fines with credit cards. If the person is fined and wishes to go to court thereafter to contest the fine, it is his/her own choice. The fine can then be reversed or minimised, according to circumstances and the person can be re-imbursed the amount where applicable.

THIS WOULD WORK - GUARANTEED.