The bumpy road taxi owners travel

DESPITE being in operation since the 70s, transporting about 70 per cent of the population, Pinetown Taxi Association chairman, Bheki Mbambo, said it still feels as if they are not taken seriously and are always left out of any decision that will affect them and their passengers.

Speaking about the inception of the industry, Mbambo said the taxi industry began with people using small cars to transport their passengers, but as time went by, other models such as Super 10 and Hi ace vehicles were designed with the latest being Quantums, now popular and a firm favourite among commuters.

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“When our industry was formed, the government at that time did not support it at all and when the new government took over, there were high hopes that we would be taken into consideration, but instead things became worse.”

Mbambo said the reason he believes the situation has taken a turn for the worse is because of the prices of the new Quantums that were introduced.

“These new vehicles cost double the amount of the Hi ace; those taxis prices were reasonable.

“As expensive as they are, we cannot double the money for the commuters, we are still charging the same amount of money.”

He said taxi owners are struggling, “The vehicles we are using are costing us an arm and a leg, petrol is expensive, taxi insurance is also very highly priced.

Why are other taxis on the roads without permission

When asked about the number of taxis that are on the roads without following correct procedures, Mbambo blamed the Department of Transport for making owners wait a long time to give them permits to operate.

“I am not encouraging people to not follow the formalities and law, but the Department of Transport should also work with us, not against us, as we work with the community.

He said other modes of transport such as buses and trains receive government subsidies.

“We are humans too and part of the community; we have families and children who also attend schools. But what is painful more than anything. is that our children do not get jobs in the Department of Transport, no matter how educated and capable they are.

What influences wars within the taxi industry

Following a spate of killings and violence in the taxi industry‚ one cannot ignore the dangers that comes with being part of this business and all being painted with the same brush.

With Mbambo having received awards from South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) for resolving conflict in various associations, the Highway Mail asked about the reason for taxi wars. He said the wars are caused mostly with associations not respecting one another regarding routes.

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“In other cases you find that if one association sees that there are many people in another association’s route, they want to be part of that route in a wrong way which then starts a war. Again, the government has power to control the taxi industry but no one cares about us,” he said.

Mbambo, who has been the deputy chairman of provincial SANTACO twice and its chairman, joined this industry more than 20 years ago as his family was among the founders.

The process of hiring a driver

Mbambo said there are procedures when hiring taxi drivers. The law states the owners should check if the person they hire has a valid driver’s licence and a valid Public Driver’s Permit (PDP).

“But I will have to put the blame on us too, as taxi owners, sometimes we do not follow up to check if those permits are still valid. No taxi owner teaches a driver to do as they please on the roads. When roads were built, taxis were not taken into consideration as usual, and there were no stops for them.

“With the demand for this mode of transport and overcrowding, commuters end up stopping taxis anywhere in the roads,” he said.

He added that he strongly believes that there should be peace and stability among the people in the taxi industry.

“Passengers are our bosses and every driver should respect them. If there are any complaints, they should follow proper channels where that matter could be dealt with.”

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