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“We formed an association in the best interests of the people of Bulawayo and I am glad to say commuters are happy with our services. Our members have road transport operators’ licences. We operate from George Silundika Street, between Sixth Avenue and Leopold Takawira Avenue.
“The Road Motor Transportation Act, 1997 Section 2 clearly defines a passenger transport service to include unmetered taxis and Section 7 of the Act makes provision for unmetered taxis to be issued with operator’s licences. This means that we are operating legally.”
He said the association was in the process of acquiring official parking bays from the Bulawayo City Council, which is supporting them.
“We are in the process of consulting the city council to give us official parking bays where we will operate from. No one has the right to question our existence because we are operating under the Road Motor Transportation Act and we are not criminals. Whoever has a problem should go to Parliament and lobby for the transformation of the Act.
“The registered transporters might argue that we do not have adequate documentation to allow us to do business, but most of them also do not have enough documentation. That is why the police are always chasing after them. According to the city council most of the registered kombis in the city do not have enough paper work,” said Mr Khumalo.
He was armed with copies of road transport operators’ licences for some of the Expriccos members, a copy of the Road Motor
Transportation Act and a petition signed by 1 011 residents, supporting the unmetered taxis.
In the petition, the residents said the introduction of the association was a welcome move, which gave people choice between the kombi operators and the smaller cars.
They said there was a significant change in transport provision both in efficiency and customer care. However, the Bulawayo
Public Transporters Association (Bupta) secretary-general, Mr Albert Ncube insisted that the unmetered taxis were operating illegally because there is a contradiction between their operations and what is written on their operators’ licences.
“They apply for licences as unmetered taxis but when they are on the ground they operate like kombis. After all it is not all of them who have the licences because there are more than 60 small cars, which operate from that area.
“If they are supposed to operate as public transport operators, then they should be having red number plates instead of yellow,” he said.
Mr Ncube vowed that if the city council gave their rivals route permits, they would join them and operate from the city centre.
“There is no reason why kombis should operate from Egodini when we are doing the same business with the smaller cars. If the city council gives them official parking bays in the city centre, we will simply join them and operate from the same place,” said Mr Ncube.
He said the unmetered taxis were operating without route permits and passenger insurance.
About three weeks ago, a taxi war erupted in the city where high speed chases involving commuter omnibus operators, pirate taxis and the police became the order of the day. The registered operators were chasing the smaller vehicles and forcing passengers to disembark and board kombis.
Residents complained bitterly saying they could be killed in car crashes or their children would be run over by the speeding cars.
Online Reporter