Eastern Cape taxi drivers say that drivers who pick up hitchhikers make them angry as the taxi industry is losing more money by the day.
Eastern Cape taxi drivers say that drivers who pick up hitchhikers make them angry as the taxi industry is losing more money by the day.
The National Land Transport Act states that a driver has to be in possession of a valid operating licence in order to ferry passengers for cash, otherwise they are not covered by insurance.
Many motorists are giving lifts to hitchhikers using government and company vehicles. Ncedo Kumbaca, the
Director of Communications at the Department of Transport in the Eastern Cape, said: “People must call the police whenever they are confronted by taxi operators and ensure that they hike at the right places, not in areas where there are signs forbidding hitchhiking.”
The department is engaging with various role players to address the issue. In October last year a hitchhiking indaba was held in East London where the matter was put under the spotlight.
However, taxi drivers say that allowing hitchhiking means no business for taxi drivers and it is a threat to the taxi industry.
It challenges the income, profits and payments of instalments of the vehicles used by the industry. East London taxi driver Khaya Ndlela has been in the taxi industry for two decades. “Hitchhiking is affecting us badly.
This is my only source of income and from this I must support five children and my wife.” He says that in the 90s taxi drivers used to make eight to ten trips a day in distances such as from East London to King William’s Town but now they only make one trip per day or none at all.
“The money we make is peanuts and from it we must pay high taxi instalments making it hard for some who end up committing suicide like Mr Hlekiso of Ginsburg in December 2009.”
One of the factors that led to hitchhiking was the taxi violence during the late 90s but today commuters have other reasons for choosing a lift over a taxi.
Asanda Mkhosana, a second-year student at Walter Sisulu University, hitchhikes because it is much cheaper.
“I only pay R50 to go to Mthatha, rather than the R80 charged in a taxi. Other commuters complain that the taxis take forever to get full especially if one is in a hurry, so hitchhiking becomes the only option.”
