Commuters will have to make alternative travelling arrangements this afternoon as an immediate taxi strike has been implemented from 15:00 today (Thursday 3 August).
The announcement was made by the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) following a mass meeting held this morning between eight regional associations to discuss on the current tensions between the industry and the City of Cape Town.
The City’s Traffic Services has confirmed that slow moving traffic out of the CBD can be expected on all the freeways.
Kevin Jacobs, spokesperson for the city’s traffic services, says: “Taxis leaving town are slowing down traffic – resulting in tailbacks. The Traffic Services is monitoring the situation. Motorists are advised to please take alternative routes, where possible, to get to their destinations.”
In a press release, Santaco said the strike will continue until Wednesday 9 August.
“During this stay-away there will be no march or any form of protests that will take place. All operations will stop and we have urged our operators to refrain from any acts of violence and threatening behaviour.
“Normal taxi operations will resume Thursday 10 August after which we will make further announcement on the way forward,” read the statement.
Bronwen Dyke-Beyer, spokesperson for Golden Arrow, says services will continue as usual during peak traffic today.
“Golden Arrow plans to operate its full services but we are on very high alert and working closely with our law enforcement partners. We intend to operate until all passengers have been assisted. We will post updates as more information becomes available or circumstances change.”
David Maynier, provincial education minister, says he is concerned about the impact the strike will have on learners and teachers.
“Our matriculants are currently preparing for their trial exams, and our schools are working hard to get #BackOnTrack. We simply cannot afford this kind of disruption to teaching and learning.
“We want to make it clear that if we see any acts of intimidation of learners travelling to school, or of our contracted Learner Transport Scheme busses, we will not hesitate to approach the court for another interdict against the taxi associations,” says Maynier.
