Second Rea Vaya bus operating company coming

The value of the contract over the 12-year period is R2.68 billion. The value of the contract for the first year is R160.3 million. City of Johannesburg MMC for Transport Christine Walters said this was after the council of the City of Johannesburg approved the agreement at its council meeting on 25 June and after two years of negotiations with affected operators from the minibus taxi industry and PUTCO. Walters said the signing reflects another milestone in the journey of the City to give both commuters and public transport operators dignity and in the transformation of public transport not only in the City of Joburg, but in Gauteng and South Africa. “It is planned to be implemented from 1 August after a transition period of a month where the board of the new company needs to fulfil certain obligations to ensure a smooth transition between the temporary company that has been in place since October 2013 when the service started,” she said.

The new company is 75 percent owned by former taxi operators and 25 percent by PUTCO. The Bus Operating Company Agreement (BOCA) which was signed will provide bus services along Rea Vaya Phase 1B routes. These include the trunk route from Thokoza Park to Parktown and feeders and complementary services to and from Cresta, Flora Centre, Yeoville, Parktown, Pimville, Dobsonville and Mapetla.

The BOCA makes provision for:

•  The BOCA to own the buses after six years on the condition that certain performance and governance indicators are met
•  Penalties if the BOCA does not perform quality bus services and a patronage incentive if the passengers’ numbers increase
•  Free use of a depot provided by the City to operate services and maintain buses
•  Payment on a fee per km basis and the circumstances in which the fee will be paid or not paid when there is a strike and/or other unusual circumstances such as flooding
•  Mechanisms for the City to monitor the BOCA and step in when there is a threat to service delivery.