Are you tired of waiting for a minibus taxi only to find it full upon arrival? Cape Town residents now have more options thanks to a new app sanctioned by the Western Cape government.
Taxi drivers and clients can now connect during the day, safely and more seamlessly, via Loop, a new e-hailing app developed by a Cape Town tech start-up
On Monday, the Loop team met Western Cape Premier Alan Winde, Mobility MEC Daylin Mitchell and transport and public works portfolio committee member Ricardo Mackenzie to engage on the logistics of the new service at Mitchells Plain taxi rank.
According to Loop’s Jamie Wyngaard, the purpose of the engagement with the government and their teams was to get input from government and the community on how they feel about the app and the service’s shadow call centre being set up in the community.
“Loop service is app-based,” Wyngaard explained. “The vision is to evolve the service to allow individual commuters to use the service to book their taxi trips to work, shops, school and everywhere else that citizens go using taxis.”
“The users of our service are at the centre of the work we do. This applies to taxi operators, drivers and commuters alike.”
“With this event, we are saying that we are building a service fit for the premier and his ministers, but we are building that service for our community members.”
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Wyngaard added that developers were building a service for taxi operators and drivers who play an important role in the economy and society.
“Loop’s shuttle service is currently available on our website, and our prices are affordable, especially if you’re splitting the fare,” he said.
Founder Imtiyaaz Riley, added that they were pleased to have the support of the Western Cape government. “We are very aware of the visionary conversations around urban mobility that Minister Mitchell is leading,” Riley said.
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“As active citizens and entrepreneurs, we see ourselves playing a major role in bringing Premier Winde and Minister Mitchell’s visions to life.”
“We are not waiting for the government to do things for us. We are stepping up to do things with the government, that’s the Loop approach. That’s how Loop sees things, and we are very glad that the Western Cape government shares our vision,” he added.
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