Taxi drivers of the Hammanskraal taxi association took to the streets in the early hours of this morning, 07 January 2017 to protest against a new bus deal that sees them ferrying commuters from Hammanskraal Renbro Taxi Rank until the Wonderboom Rainbow station.
The City of Tshwane recently entered into an agreement with taxi associations operating along the Hammanskraal, Rainbow Junction public transport facility and the CBD. Following the introduction of the Are Yeng Bus Transit System between Rainbow Junction and the Tshwane CBD, minibus taxi operators were compensated for loss of revenue. The agreement is that they ferry passengers from Hammanskraal and drop them off at Rainbow Junction wherein they will board Are Yeng Bus Transit system to various parts of the CBD.
Taxi drivers claim that the new system has reduced their income to a point that they can no longer afford to support their families.
“The new R17 taxi fare deal was agreed between our bosses and the City, we did not agree to it as taxi drivers because it means we must subsidize it with our labour,” said Mr Theo Matlale, a taxi driver.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Roads and Transport Cllr Sheila Senkubuge, visited Hammanskraal with a team of officials to resolve the situation today.
She said a group of commuters marched to Tshwane House on Monday, 5 February 2018, and handed a memorandum of demands to the leadership of the City. Their demands relate to public transport services between Hammanskraal and the CBD. The City has agreed to respond to the memorandum within a week.
“We are here to engage the relevant parties and get to the bottom of what could have triggered this. We were of the view that following Monday’s protest action, a channel had been opened for us to engage with the various taxi associations in order to find lasting solutions.
“It has since been brought to our attention that some taxi operators are not adhering to this agreement. We have been engaging with the operators to ensure that they meet their end of the agreement,” said MMC Senkubuge.
She said the City of Tshwane is confident that a lasting, mutually beneficial solution will be found in the best interest of providing an efficient, reliable, affordable and safe public transport service to residents.
Residents are urged to exercise caution and desist from any conduct that would result in the destruction of infrastructure and disruption of services.
Meanwhile, bus commuters who use the North West Starline (NWS) bus services, used the opportunity to also raise their concerns over the poor bus system.
They protested peacefully and shut down roads that were leaving for town and marched to the local bus rank at Jubilee Mall to demand answers from the NWS management.
General Manager at NWS, Mr Adolph Komane, responding to the communters, said plans to introduce new buses are underway. “We apologize for the poor service and can assure you that 70 new buses are waiting for permits and will be on the road as soon as they are authorized,” he said.
At the time of publishing, commutors were still stranded at the Wonderboom station with no taxis nor buses to take them home.
The strike is also said to be continuing tomorrow with commuters insisting that they do not want to see the NWS buses tomorrow.
