AN agreement has been reached between eThekwini Municipality and the eThekwini Municipality Management Taxi Council (EMMTC) to cooperate and ensure that work on the Integrated Rapid Public Transport Network, GO!Durban construction continues.
Head of eThekwini Municipality’s Communications Unit, Tozi Mthethwa, said the outcome was in the best interest of eThekwini residents.
“The decision further reinforces the City’s commitment of developing an efficient and reliable public transport system,” she said.
Work on the transport system was halted when construction workers abandoned sites due to threats of violence by armed gangs, allegedly hired by taxi bosses. The taxi operators have accused the City of shortchanging them on the project. The municipality called a meeting after construction workers protested outside the Durban City Hall on Wednesday after missing weeks of work due to threats against them.
Following the meeting, an eThekwini taxi representative said taxi owners wanted to see eThekwini prosper, and were fully behind the GO!Durban project, despite there being some aspects of the project they were not happy with in the past. He said the intimidation of workers would stop, following the agreement.
