Taxi strike leaves Durban commuters stranded
Taxi associations annoyed by impounding of vehicles
Taxis parked at the Cartwright Taxi Rank. Photo: Joseph Bracken
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Durban taxi associations announced a two-day strike on 3 September after 25 taxis were impounded by eThekwini metro police.
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The strike left commuters, school children, and long-distance travellers stranded, with empty taxi ranks and a sharp drop in shoppers at Bridge City Mall.
- Mayor Cyril Xaba held urgent talks with taxi leaders and provincial officials, pledging to fast-track licence approvals and set up a joint task team to resolve tensions.
The Durban taxi associations have started a two-day strike, leaving many commuters stranded. On Wednesday the associations announced their decision to strike after taxis were impounded, including, they claimed, some with valid permits.
The strike has severely affected people who rely on taxis to travel to and from work, as well as school children who could not attend classes because school transport services were not operating.
The usually busy Bester Taxi Rank, situated next to KwaMashu in the north of Durban, was empty in the morning. Many people who work in areas such as Pinetown, or who travel to different parts of the city, were forced to return home as there were no alternative transport options.
So far, no incidents of violence have been reported.
The impact of the strike was also visible at Bridge City Mall in KwaMashu. The shopping centre, which usually attracts people from surrounding townships who travel by taxi, saw a sharp drop in visitors.
Tholakele Makaza, who works in Pinetown, said she had to stay at home because she could not afford e-hailing transport.
“I work at a retail shop, so I don’t earn enough money to request e-hailing transport. The strike will have a negative impact on my salary because we work on a no-work-no-pay basis,” said Makaza.
Another commuter, Thando Mzimela, said she was unable to attend her doctor’s appointment at Mahatma Gandhi Hospital because no taxis were operating.
“I will have to tell my doctor that I had no transport to get to the hospital,” said Mzimela.
Sifiso Shangase, the SANTACO KwaZulu provincial manager, told GroundUp that the main reason the taxi associations decided to go on strike is that the eThekwini metro police impounded 25 taxis, including some that had the correct documents and permits to be on the road.
“We won’t go back on the road until the talks are finalised, and we want the municipality to listen to us as well,” said Shangase.
The strike has also affected longer-distance travel, as taxis travelling outside of Durban have also been told to cease operating. In the Cartwright Taxi Rank in South Durban, taxi drivers told GroundUp they had only been notified of the strike this morning.
“The strike is frustrating, because the issues are between the inner-city taxi services and the municipality. We are hoping that the strike ends today,” said one taxi driver who had come from Hluhluwe in Northern KwaZulu-Natal that morning. The driver asked to stay anonymous out of fear of upsetting the associations.
Similarly, in Mtubatuba Taxi Rank, another long-distance taxi rank in Durban, passengers waited outside parked taxis with their luggage. Passengers said that they had no way of knowing when the strike would end and had received no updates.
On Thursday morning eThekwini Mayor Cyril Xaba convened an urgent meeting with taxi industry leaders, municipal officials, and the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport to prevent a city-wide shutdown, according to a media statement released by the municipality.
“This meeting forms part of an ongoing series of government-led interventions aimed at resolving long-standing tensions within the taxi sector, particularly in the Clermont and KwaDabeka areas.”
The statement says a joint task team will be established to oversee solutions, and an Indaba is planned with e-hailing operators and the taxi sector to address broader challenges. Mayor Xaba and Provincial Transport MEC Siboniso Duma appealed to taxi leaders to suspend the strike in the interest of public safety and service continuity.
In a voice recording sent out to the media, Ndabezinhle Sibiya, spokesperson for the Transport MEC, said that the MEC is confident that the taxi associations and the provincial government will come to a long-lasting solution. The MEC also acknowledged the inconvenience that the strike has caused for commuters and learners.
Talks between SANTACO, KZN regional taxi association directors, the eThekwini Municipality and the provincial department of transport will continue throughout the day, said Shangase.
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