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Ivan Zhakata-Herald Correspondent
HARARE City Council, through its public safety division, yesterday embarked on a traffic blitz against illegal taxi operators and those who breaking traffic by-laws, especially the use of undesignated stopping and pick-up points, to ensure that order was maintained.
This comes as unregistered vehicles and illegal taxis, commonly known as mushikashika, have resurfaced and were causing congestion in the city centre around their illegal waiting points, and undesignated pick-up and drop-off points.
Passengers are being picked up and dropped at undesignated points, causing traffic congestion on main roads during peak hours, especially when the mushikashika wait to fill all seats.
Unregistered kombis are filling bus terminus, resulting in buses loading outside the ranks and blocking the smooth flow of traffic, although the emergence of large numbers of vendors at some termini is also a serious problem.
Council’s public safety manager Mr Martin Chimombe said the operation was targeting all people who were breaking traffic laws.
“There are violent people that are violating our rules and such rules must be obeyed,” Mr Chimombe said. “We expect people to park within the parking lots and not obstruct traffic as we normally see in the city centre.
“We also expect people to make sure that they are using designated ranks for our omnibus and taxis. We would like to see order and nothing else. The worst is coming in the interest of order because without free movement of vehicles our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is likely to be in danger,” he said.
“People are failing to report to work on time because of traffic congestion and that slows economic activities and the smooth flow of traffic.”
Mr Chimombe appealed to the public to obey traffic rules as it was in the interest of every member of the society to follow the law.
Online Reporter