November 4, 2004
By Lucky Sindane
THE City of Johannesburg has set up a policy governing the allocation of space for buses and taxis at council-owned public transport facilities around the city.
This policy - to ensure the fair, proper and transparent allocation of bus and taxi ranks across Johannesburg - was decided after a series of consultative workshops with council bodies and public transport providers.
"We don't want to be labelled as being choosy by associations, we want to ensure fairness at all taxi ranks," said the City's deputy director for development planning, transportation and environment, Alfred Sam.
The City is faced with the challenge of providing public transport infrastructure such as roads and ranking facilities.
Commuters use different kinds of public transport such as taxis, trains and buses, with buses and taxis being the primary mode of transport.
Because of this, there has been an ever-growing demand for ranks, and existing facilities are stretched to the limit. "The City must ensure that these facilities are not abused and over-utilised," said Sam.
"The City must also ensure that operators using these facilities have been allocated space following proper and fair procedures," he added.
Two types of workshops were held recently: one with internal stakeholders such as council officials and representatives from the various utilities, agencies and corporate entities; and the other with 11 taxi associations and the South African Bus Operators' Association.
Following the consultations, a policy was drawn up "to ensure there is openness in the allocation of space and that due process is followed".
One aspect of the policy involved the identification of vehicles allowed to use selected ranks.
Vehicles that have been allocated space should display a rank permit issued by the City of Johannesburg on the windscreen. This permit should be placed on the bottom right corner of the windscreen. Vehicles without such a facility permit will not be allowed into the ranks.
In a case where the permit is not available from the City, the operator should have a letter from the City indicating that the permit will be displayed as soon as it is available.
Because the taxi industry was not subsidised in the past, the City undertook to subsidise a large portion of the operating costs of the ranks and not pass on the full costs to the taxi operators.
Sam said: "The City is currently investigating the proposed approach to financing the operation of public transport facilities and the payment of cab licences by public transport operators. The investigation should be completed in the next three months."
The policy also anticipates the developing of new ranks as the city continues to grow. This increase in the number of people using public transport will lead to an increased demand for new routes.
Where formal ranking facilities and space is not available, the City will identify prospective sites where operators will be temporarily located until proper facilities are provided.
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