Vanderbijilpark scholar transport driver abandons bail

 

Twenty-two-year-old Ayanda Dludla, the scholar transport driver at the centre of the deadly Vanderbijlpark crash, has abandoned his bail bid.

Dludla appeared before the Vanderbijlpark Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, facing 14 counts of murder, three attempted murder, and negligent driving.

Additional charges include operating a motor vehicle without a certificate of fitness, driving without a professional driving permit, and operating an unlicensed motor vehicle.

Twelve learners from schools around the Vanderbijlpark area tragically lost their lives on Monday. Two more learner succumbed to their injuries in hospital, in the early hours of Thursday, bringing the death toll to 14. Three other learners remain hospitalised.

The scholar transport taxi collided with a truck on the R553 Golden Highway after the driver allegedly attempted to overtake several vehicles.

The tragedy which has left families and community members reeling from pain, has shed light on the country’s poor schooling transport system.

Minister of Transport, Barbara Creecy, says it’s alarming that unroadworthy vehicles continue to transport learners. She has proposed stricter regulations, including compulsory advanced driver training for scholar transport drivers.

“There is a provision in the Act, section 42.2 of the Act, that I can make regulations that require drivers who are transporting learners to have advanced driver training,” Crecy said. “I’m going to introduce that regulation because I think it’s terribly important that drivers understand how to drive responsibly and also how to drive defensively when they are carrying  people’s precious children.”

Creecy added that the existing law already requires that scholar transport vehicles have to be clearly marked.

“So this is something else that we are going to have to step up , and of course, in due course, there are other forms of technology that can be introduced,” she said. “It’s widely accepted in the trucking industry that there have to be dashcams. We’ve already agreed with Santaka that the industry has to begin the introduction of dash cams so that you can control driver behaviour.”

The matter has been postponed to March 5 for further investigations.

 

Meanwhile some social media users have reacted to the driver’s arrest.

Wait the driver wa that Vaal accident was driving an unlicensed vehicle and didn’t have a licence himself…WTF😩

— Dreamer🔮 | Princess🦁| (@Max_Mofo) January 22, 2026

The South African government is so performative especially when tragedy strikes and they’ll pretend to be working just like now what they’re doing because of that taxi accident in Vaal.They did the same thing with the Spaza shop debacle and now they’re quiet… @GovernmentZA

— Sundowns_Fanatic08 (@Madumetja__M08) January 22, 2026

We had a deadly accident in the Vaal area of Vanderbijlpark. We actually had 11 kids who died last year because of a similar incident. Every year it is the same thing with #scholartransport and this government is not willing to do anything about it! Ayanda Dludla is not alone! pic.twitter.com/Ceh5db1yoG

— Tlotliso Mphuthi 🇿🇦🇮🇱🇱🇸 (@TlotlisoM_) January 22, 2026

Scholar transport kids taken too soon. Today the Vaal suspect appeared in court but no sentence can bring back 14 young lives.This wasn’t just an accident. It was negligence. Justice must be louder than our grief. pic.twitter.com/Yncn5v2PjG

— SimangeleM (@LawOfAt27180945) January 22, 2026