News24 | Route closures could last up to a year, Western Cape govt warns warring taxi bodies

Mobility MEC Isaac Sileku has warned rival taxi associations that the provincial government will not hesitate to extend route and rank closures for up to a year if violence continues.

• The Western Cape government has warned rival taxi associations that route and rank closures could last up to a year if taxi violence continues.
• This, after the province shut down routes in Somerset West, Mfuleni and Khayelitsha for 30 days.
• The Cape Organisation for the Democratic Taxi Association went to court to challenge the move, but its case was delayed due to incomplete paperwork.

The Western Cape government will not hesitate to extend current route and rank closures for up to a year if taxi violence continues, it has warned rival taxi associations.

In fact, Mobility MEC Isaac Sileku reminded operators that the provincial government had done so before.

In July 2021, the B97 route between Bellville and Paarl (Mbekweni) was shut down for nearly 18 months amid bloodshed between the Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association (CATA) Boland and the Paarl Alliance Taxi Association, an affiliate of the Cape Organisation for the Democratic Taxi Association (Codeta).

The route was only reopened when a peace deal was struck.

Wednesday marked the first day of the 30-day closure of key routes and ranks in Somerset West, Mfuleni, and Khayelitsha — now the epicentre of the taxi conflict.

Codeta rushed to court to try to have the closure overturned, but its case could not proceed because its paperwork was not ready.

“Our drivers have been operating without violence,” Codeta chairperson Nceba Enge argued. “It is not fair that we cannot operate while we are not involved in any violence.”

Six taxis were impounded on Wednesday for operating along closed routes. Another was seized for reckless driving unrelated to the closures.

Sileku said he could extend the measure repeatedly if the violence persisted.

“We had an option to close [the ranks and routes] for 90 days,” he said.

READ | Cape Town taxi violence: Codeta to challenge 30-day route closures

“We purposefully decided on 30 days. If we do not find an amicable solution within 30 days, I have the right to extend. I will do that if I have to extend more than once.”

He criticised Codeta for rushing to court but not putting the same effort into negotiations.

Sileku also said he had already signed off papers in response to Codeta’s application, should the matter be set down this week.

The impact of the closures has been immediate.

Some commuters were stranded after night shifts, and street vendors complained of plummeting sales at the now-quiet taxi ranks.

“The buses operate on schedules, whereas taxis are always available,” said a nurse who had just finished a night shift and could not find any transport home.

Inside the City of Cape Town’s joint operations centre, CCTV cameras feed live footage across the metro, enabling the rapid deployment of officers.

Mayco member for safety and security JP Smith said more than 260 personnel have been deployed to ensure order.

“We have taxis that are violating the instructions and going to ranks where they are not supposed to be,” Smith said.

“We are dealing with a disaster here where some people think it is okay to kill for money. Until those murders are resolved, nothing will come right.”

Meanwhile, CATA has asked for time to mourn two of its senior leaders — deputy chairperson Mnikeli Mgope, who was gunned down in Nyanga last week, and Andile Seyamo, who was killed on Tuesday.

According to Sileku, once a peace agreement is reached, he will approach the court to formalise it into a binding order with punitive measures for those who breach it.