Taxi fares expected to increase between R1-R5

© Glyn Spencer via 123RF

The taxi-industry will try its best to try and reduce the blow to consumers while keeping operators afloat, South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) spokesperson Thabisho Molelekwa told News24.

"We all know that the economy is struggling which increases the pressure on all fronts for taxi operators. Taxi operators need to navigate increased fuel prices, maintenance cost, paying vehicle instalments while keeping prices affordable," Molelekwa said.

Modernised minibus-taxi industry to have central role in Cape Town's IPTN Business Plan

25 Aug 2017

"I think we are proud of the fact that the industry has survived storms in the past, and we are confident that we'll be able to survive this storm as well. We trust there will be some release soon."

In June, the taxi association brought large parts of Johannesburg to a standstill when they demanded that the prices of minibuses be reduced, but Molelekwa said no further protest action was planned.

"A taxi strike is a last resort, but at the moment all communication channels are open with the transport department and Toyota said they are also trying hard to decrease minibus prices."

In 2016, a Statistics South Africa report found that 51.0% of South African households are dependent on taxis for transport.

Is carpooling the future of urban mobility?

Chris Megan  24 Aug 2017

The 'Measuring Household Expenditure on Public Transport' report found that 66.6% of the population spent more than 20% of their monthly income on public transport.

Source: News24 via AllAfrica