Crazy to think the South African National Traffic Information System (NATIS) is only four years’ old. Established in 2021 by the Road Traffic Management Council (RTMC), it started merely as a way to renew vehicle licence discs online.
At the time, there were dozens of alternatives to the taxpayer-funded service – banks, the post office and supermakets. However, in a relatively short space of time, NATIS has emerged as the defacto renewal portal online that all others piggyback on.
BIG BOOST COMING FOR NATIS
Furthermore, over the half decade, NATIS has steadily expanded to include other services, like driver’s licence renewals and learner’s licence bookings. Better still, NATIS can now provide you with a certified damage report in case of an insurance claim for a vehicle accident.
However, the Deputy Minister of Transport, Mkhuleko Hlengwa, last week revealed ambitious upgrades to NATIS for next year. Specifically, NATIS will expand its service scope by onboarding at least four additional registration clients. What this will do is improve the already-excellent efficiency, reducing queues and wait time further still, reports TopAuto .
HOW THE UPGRADES WILL HELP YOU
One of the RTMC’s goals for NATIS is a new Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN). Currently, the online portal relies on copper connectivity technology, but the former will improve network speed and security tremendously.
Likewise, NATIS will introduce biometric identity verification as a means to eliminate fraudulent activities. And one of the biggest changes will be digitised learner and driver’s licence applications.
GOOD NEWS FOR LICENCE APPLICATIONS
The department wants to continue with Computerised Learner’s Licence Testing (CLLT), as well as fully digitised driving licence testing. Hlengwa says the system will modernise the way driver competence is assessed in South Africa.
More than two-million online vehicle licence renewals went through NATIS in the last financial year. That’s a 54% year-on-year increase. Plus, it handled 78 566 online vehicle registrations and 112 845 online change of ownership transactions.
HAVE YOU USED IT AND WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE NATIS SYSTEM?
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