Tensions between the City of Cape Town and taxi associations have flared up again, following a wave of minibus taxi impoundments, Cape {town} Etc reports.
Also read: Significant impact of taxi strike, estimated costs in billions, says WCG
Commuters fear that the tension between the City and taxi associations could cause a repeat of last year’s strike, initiated abruptly by the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) in response to taxi impoundments.
Five people lost their lives during the violent protests, nine Golden Arrow buses were burnt, and many were damaged, resulting in billions in economic losses and daily losses of R16 million for taxi operators.
The adverse effects were particularly felt in economically disadvantaged areas, where 16% of businesses reported difficulties transporting workers from Khayelitsha.
Many fear that without urgent intervention, the latest dispute could follow the same dangerous path.
The South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) has accused the City of Cape Town of using taxi impoundments as part of a deliberate money-making scheme.
These accusations were fuelled by a leaked audio clip, allegedly featuring a City official discussing vehicle impoundment targets during a meeting.
JP Smith, mayoral committee member for Safety and Security, confirmed that the audio was recorded during a routine Safety and Security management meeting.
Defending the practice, Smith explained, ‘Performance targets are a standard part of professional environments, including enforcement services. However, these meetings are confidential, and the recording and sharing of the audio is a breach of the employment agreement.’
Smith emphasised that the high number of impoundments was driven by public complaints about reckless taxi operations, adding that 1 984 taxis were impounded between July and September 2024, with 1 200 seized in the last two months alone.
‘The City receives a high volume of complaints every day, and we are mandated to act accordingly,’ said Smith.
He also highlighted that the impoundments align with the Taxi Task Team’s existing agreements to regulate the sector.
SANTACO’s Western Cape chairperson, Mandla Hermanus, criticised the City for targeting operators, particularly those awaiting operating licences (OLs) for new routes gazetted only in early October.
He argued that many taxis were impounded unfairly before operators had a chance to legalise these routes. ‘This feels like a campaign to drain money from the industry before the OLs are approved,’ Hermanus said.
Hermanus further expressed concern that enforcement officers were being pressured to meet quotas for impoundments, as hinted at in the leaked audio.
He also warned that the City might attempt to shift public sentiment by promoting stricter by-laws that would allow for vehicle impoundments based on driver behaviour, as Smile FM reported.
‘We expect JP Smith to push a narrative on social media suggesting that taxis are out of control, creating justification for expanding impoundments through new by-laws.’
SANTACO has called for a more constructive approach, proposing driver training programmes and standardised taxi branding as alternatives to impoundments.
‘We are open to working with the City to develop solutions that bring lasting improvements to the industry,’ said Hermanus. The association hopes to raise these issues at the next Minibus Taxi Task Team meeting.
JP Smith said that the City issued 103 traffic fines on Tuesday and explained the process of dealing with the taxi drivers.
‘Today we issued 103 traffic fines. In each case, the accused has the option to appear in court and plead why they believe they were not in the wrong. If they believe that they do not have a worthy defense for the courts, they can choose to instead rather pay the ‘admission of guilt’ fine.’
‘But if they ignore the fine and still do not go to court, then they are charged by the courts for being in contempt and a warrant is issued for their arrest. Today we stopped 11 drivers who had contempt charges, who were released with the strict instructions to appear in court within the next 24h. We arrested another 15 drivers who had already previously failed to appear. Called a ‘double warrant,’ they will now remain in custody until they appear in court.’
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Pictures: Screenshot / JP Smith
