The Menlyn Taxi Association is demanding long overdue payments from City of Tshwane.
This after the Tshwane Metro promised to compensate the association for interfering with its taxi routes by introducing A re Yeng buses in 2013 on several taxi routes, thus making business for the taxi association slow and reducing their income.
They were joined by other taxi association MALLDTA, EPTA, PLAZA.
“Since 2016 we have been receiving notices and letters from the City of Tshwane with promises of being paid a lump sum for our losses but until now nothing positive has come from the Tshwane Metro regarding payments that are long overdue to us,” said Menlyn Taxi Association Deputy chairperson David Ramatsetse.
He said the original agreement with the City of Tshwane was for the City use taxi routes that run from the Pretoria CBD to Hatfield, but when former mayor Randall Williams took over control of the City of Tshwane he added the use of Tshwane Rapid Transport on the Menlyn Taxi route, which is Line 2B, without compensating us or negotiating with the association.
He lamented the fact that they as taxi operators are now competing with Tshwane Rapid Transport buses for customers.
“We are practically out of business now because buses travelling in our routes are always full while we run with taxis that are almost empty,” lamented Ramatsetse.
“We are going to Tshwane Metro Municipality to hand over a memorandum of demands and if the Tshwane Metro does not respond positively within a reasonable time we shall shut down Tshwane,” said Ramatsetse as he talked to Tshwane Talks on Friday during the march to Tshwane House.
“We feel disrespected because the City’s Rapid Bus Transport has made life worse for our drivers and many of them can’t make any ends meet in the duties as taxi drivers because they only have one taxi vehicle and that doesn’t bring in enough money for them,” he said.
Ramatsetse revealed that they are expecting R1 136 000 in 2016 yet the money is still outstanding, pointing out that taxi operators are frustrated because they have to fight before the said money can be released.
He explained that the Bus Rapid Transport matter has affected the business of several taxi association’s which will also be joining the Menlyn Taxi Association in their march to the City of Tshwane headquarters.
The taxi association’s secretary Kenneth Mathubela told Tshwane Talks that the City of Tshwane promised to compensate 124 taxi vehicles which will be taken off the routes, but has only paid some money on an interim basis and not in full.
Mathubela pointed out that his taxi used to make R800 for him per day, but now it only makes R500, pointing out that several taxi operators have had their vehicles repossessed as they can’t afford to pay their monthly installments because of low income.
“Our customers now prefer to use City of Tshwane’s A re Yeng buses and this means we have been working at a loss since 2014/2015,” he said.
“Our message to the City of Tshwane is that let the A re Yeng buses go back to their core mandate and stop being used to kill our taxi businesses,” said Mathibela.
At Tshwane House member of the Menlyn Taxi Association Jabulani Johannes Skosana Association explained that their lives are miserable now, that according to the banks they are no longer credit worthy and they can’t afford to send their children to decent schools which they used to send them to before.
“We are saying let Tshwane Metro Municipality intervene and pay us our money, but it is unfortunate that we got to speak to the MMC for Transport Katlego Mathebe instead of the City Manager himself, this as the MMC has previously shown no interest to engage them,” explained Skosana.
Skosana pointed out the MMC promised to respond to their demands in Tuesday this week.