The constant rising price of petrol is responsible for the recent increase in taxi fare.
That is according Veli Mbatha, chairman of the Springs Taxi Association, who said they were left with no choice.
He said before implementing the increase, they met with South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO), which represented the community.
Duduza was the first to increase the fare at the beginning of the month, followed by KwaThema in the middle of the month, which caught many passengers by surprise.
However, Mbatha insists taxi drivers were told to be flexible because people were not notified in time.
“When a taxi is not making money, it also affects the maintenance, and being able to keep the taxi in good condition,” explained the chairman.
People doing daily return trips to Springs from Duduza and KwaThema are coughing up between R50 and R100 extra monthly.
Mbatha said issues of taxi increases are raised during general meetings, then the executive members ensure there is proper implementation.
Jacob Seku from KwaThema says as passengers they need to be understanding that everything increases.
“Its just unfortunate that my employer doesn’t understand that, and this unexpected taxi increase forced me to borrow money from neighbours to survive until pay day,” Jacob added.
Sibongile Mkhwanazi from Duduza says she is going to have a hard time adjusting to the new prices.
The single mother said, “I have to pay to come to work and my son to go to school everyday and it’s not easy.”
Sizwe Nkambule of KwaThema says he found himself in trouble as it was his first month on the job, he explained that he had budgeted just enough to cover him until his first pay cheque.
