Cape Town - Thousands of people flocked to the Joe Gqabi bus terminus in Philippi this week in the hope of getting a spot on a bus for their annual trek to the Eastern Cape. Taxi bosses and drivers said scores of passengers slept over at the bus terminus on Thursday, waiting for their transport.
Though many had booked their seats in advance, hundreds like Anelisa Mfengu sat on their suitcases waiting for queue marshals to call them to empty seats. Mfengu told Weekend Argus that by 7pm on Thursday she had been waiting for over four hours.
“I was too late to book a bus because I only got paid today. I don’t know when I will get a bus but I will sit here until I get one.”
Like many others, Mfengu is only able to see her family once a year. She said going home for the December holidays was more than just a 14-hour trip.
“It’s an opportunity for me to spend time with my parents and siblings.
“I came to Cape Town to find work. Because I know there are heavy cost implications involved with travelling to the Eastern Cape, I try to save the whole year so that I can at least go home with some money and be able to do things for my family.”
Meanwhile Nceba Maqwara, 25, sat in a packed minibus taxi headed for Ngcobo. He said he needed to save a minimum of R20 000 during the year to enable him to go home for the holidays.
He said he had to give up many luxuries during the year to ensure he had enough money to spend with his family back home.
“I have a family I need to see to. I work as a contract worker and I have to make sure that I save every bit I can. When we get to the Eastern Cape, it is not always just about visiting. For example, right now I have R30 000 with me with which I must buy a cow for a ritual we have coming up; I must buy a case of brandy which costs well over R1 000; then I must still make sure that I do the Christmas shopping for the whole family.”
Maqwara said he had to quit school to take care of his siblings after his parents died a few years ago.
“I am the eldest at home so everything is dependent on me.”
Zizipho Dyoni and her two children were travelling in the same taxi. Dyoni told the Weekend Argus she had been “waiting for this time since January”.
“I get to go home only once a year but I must also be sure that I save money for school fees and travelling to work. It’s not easy but it is worth it.”
The City of Cape Town’s Traffic Service, which stationed three vehicles at the terminus exit, was conducting “Operation Exodus”, a driver and vehicle fitness test.
Exodus is a free service which tests the tyres, brakes and seatbelts of buses and minibuses. Principal inspector Adrian Long said 80 vehicles were tested daily and about 20percent failed the tests.
“The failed vehicles get a chance to fix the things that are wrong and then they can come back for another test. This operation is actually to their benefit because they are able to stay on the road and do more trips.”
Operation Exodus started on December 12 and will run until December 24.
Bus driver Phopho Sikukuku said the operation was “a great service and helps to force the vehicle owners to keep them in good condition”.
Sikukuku said he did about 15 trips to and from the Eastern Cape during the festive season with passengers paying R600 a trip. They were also charged for some of the luggage - buckets cost an extra R20, while cases of brandy cost R50 a case. Mzwenkosi Mandla, who was on his way to a funeral and a holiday in Ngqamakwe, cut a frustrated and forlorn figure at the terminus. He said he had been told that buses were already fully booked.
He bought a ticket at 3pm, when he was told the bus would depart soon. At 6.30pm, passengers started whispering among themselves the bus was going to be late. Mandla said he did not want to even think about how much he would spend over the next fortnight.
David Sanqu, a sprinter bus driver, said this was the last busy week at the terminus until the big rush back to the city. Sanqu said he preferred long-distance trips to local short trips because he believed city traffic services targeted taxi and sprinter bus drivers. “They need to stop fighting us. We are not the danger they’re making us out to be.”
Sanqu, who planned to have a two-hour rest in the Eastern Cape before the return nine-hour trip, said he had been driving buses for 13 years without incident.
He was aware of taxi drivers stopping sprinter buses along the way, offloading their passengers by force and taking over the entire trip.