Pretoria — A driver has been arrested in the North West for overloading a vehicle with 33 learners. The vehicle is only certified to carry nine passengers.

The driver, who was arrested on Wednesday afternoon, will appear in the Delareyville Magistrate's Court on Friday.

The driver, whose vehicle is allegedly contracted by government to transport learners, further failed to produce a driver's licence and the car was not roadworthy.

According to traffic authorities, the learners claimed to have complained to the driver on numerous occasions about the situation.

The vehicle has been impounded and discontinued, while the driver is currently detained at the Delareyville police station and is facing charges of overloading.

North West MEC for Human Settlements, Public Safety and Liaison, Nono Maloyi, has pleaded to motorists to adhere to road rules at all times.

He said road offenders, especially drivers transporting school children, would be dealt with harshly.

"Overloading is one of the contributory factors that cause a high number of fatalities on our roads. We are going to continue dealing harshly with those offenders," said Maloyi.