DURBAN – Thousands of commuters have been left stranded following a taxi strike across Durban on Wednesday. Taxis had barricaded most of the main routes entering and exiting the Durban city centre and have blocked off access to the Toyota plant in Prospecton, south of the city. In Isipingo Beach, residents said roads leading to and out of the area were barricaded by taxis.
On Wednesday morning, thousands of commuters were forced to walk to work as no taxis were operating. On King Dinizulu (Berea) Road south, hundreds of commuters snaked their way into the city centre.
The taxi industry is protesting the high price of the Quantam taxi which they said costs R450 000 despite it being locally built. They say that 10 years ago the same vehicle cost just over R200 000 fully imported.
They planned to hand over a memorandum of their grievances to Toyota today.
In a statement issued by the South African Taxi Association (SANTACO), drivers had gathered at 5am at Avenue East near the Toyota plant. The protest was meant to be a peaceful demonstration, however reports that drivers had started burning tyres along the M35 intersection at uMbumbulu and Isipingo surfaced on social media just after 5am. Others have resorted to parking their taxis along roads, blocking off traffic in various areas of the city.
Watch: Commuters were forced to walk to work o
n Wednesday morning.
Thulani Qwabe, Chief Executive Officer of Taxi Choice, said the strike is due to the prices of taxis and other issues faced by taxi owners including; interest rates, insurance premiums and tracking company prices.
“The taxi industry feels that it has done enough talking. Today was our first action to voice our concern. It is now time for action,” he said.
Qwabe said they have come up with a comparison of various finance packages which are offered to the taxi industry, compared to what leaders in the industry believe they should be paying.
Watch: Taxi block freeway
“The deal structure demonstrates that the industry is unhappy with various stakeholders and therefore the protest was planned,” he said.
Qwabe stated that while the protest was due to be a peaceful one, he can confirm that certain taxi operators said this matter is close to their heart and have opted to dedicate a whole day to the protest.
“The areas most affected are that way because many of the operators live there and are passionate about his cause. This means communities will have to find alternate means of transport for routes to work,” he said.
What taxi Industry claims to pay and what they believe they should pay:
Source: Taxi Choice
Lieutenant Colonel Thulani Zwane, provincial police spokesman, said taxis have blocked the roads along the N2 near Prospecton and surrounding areas.
Who the taxi industry is targeting:
"They have also blocked off West Street and Warwick Avenue. Police are monitoring the situation and motorists are urged to use alternate routes," he said.