Newsletter 14 - Taxi Rapid Transit System – 27 March 2009
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Taxis transported 4 million people, which equated to 65% of public transport users in South Africa. In Johannesburg alone, there were 12 500 taxis transporting over a million people, or 72% of the city’s public transport users, according to the City of Johannesburg.
On 24th March 2009, taxi drivers across Johannesburg suspended their services in a protest against the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, and obstructed entrance into the CBD. The protest occurred due to fears that the taxi industry would diminish as a result of the BRT system, resulting in job losses for taxi drivers, and others employed within the industry.
The number of minibus taxis ferrying commuters was estimated to be around 130 000 in 2007, according to the 2007/08 South Africa Survey published by the South African Institute of Race Relations. Taxis transported 4 million people, which equated to 65% of public transport users in South Africa. In Johannesburg alone, there were 12 500 taxis transporting over a million people, or 72% of the city’s public transport users, according to the City of Johannesburg. The BRT system is aimed at providing an alternative means of transport for these taxi users, which is ‘fast, convenient, safe and affordable’. This BRT system will also be used during the 2010 Soccer World Cup, in line with the minister of transport’s promise to the organising committee that the country will provide the highest quality and performance standards for the world cup.
The BRT system in Johannesburg was named Rea Vaya – meaning ‘we are going’. The overall goal of the Rea Vaya initiative in Johannesburg is to provide high quality and affordable public transport system. The long-term vision is to develop a system that places over 85% of Johannesburg’s population within 500 metres of the system.
Similar systems are to be implemented in the City of Tshwane, City of Cape Town, Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality, Buffalo City Municipality, Mbombela Municipality, Mangaung Municipality, Polokwane Municipality, Rustenburg Municipality, and Msunduzi Municipality. All eight of the municipalities covered by the municipal outreach project are planning to implement the BRT system.
The municipal outreach project aims to provide extensive research into the eight major municipalities in the country. This will be done by means of publications, the project website, and workshops. A monthly publication called Fast Facts for Local Government (F3LG) is sent to local councillors, officials, and development organisations in the eight municipalities covered by the project. A weekly newsletter is posted on the project website on Fridays, and e-mailed to project beneficiaries. The annual South Africa Survey, published by the Institute, will be posted to municipalities and extracts posted on the project website.
Workshops will take place during the course of the project in each of the eight municipalities. The first will be the Major Urban Poverty Challenges Identification (MUPCI) workshops which will take place during 2009, and will be designed for elected councillors and officials to identify what they see as the major poverty challenges facing their constituents. The Urban Poverty Intervention (UPI) workshops will take place during 2010, and will explore policy interventions appropriate to the challenges identified in the MUPCI workshops. The Anti Poverty Intervention Implementation Proposals (APIIP) workshops will take place during 2011, and will formally propose the policy interventions identified in the first two years.
Municipal councillors and officials, as well as development organisations working within these municipalities, are encouraged to participate in this pioneering initiative to combat poverty in South Africa's major urban districts.
-Nthami Kgafela
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nkgafela
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last modified
2009-03-30 07:16
