Taxi fares up over 100%
The South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) has announced a price fare increase which will impact every association across the country.
Santaco secretary-general Ralph Jones said the industry would have to implement an increase from R13 to R30 as of 15 June, as the lockdown had impacted harshly on business.
Due to Covid-19 regulations limiting the number of people allowed in a taxi, operators had lost a substantial amount of money, Jones said.
He added that government had not compensated or subsidised taxi associations.
“The government started to make noise, saying there was a relief fund for the taxi industry, which was never done.
“Because of that our cars are being repossessed, our drivers are not working because they are fighting with the operators or their owners, and petrol is expensive,” Jones said.
He added that he understood commuters were experiencing economic hardship, but the industry was in the same position.
“We understand that some people are not working, and people are going to lose their jobs as well. From our side, it will be the same thing,” Jones said. “This thing affects all of us and especially long-distance operations.”
He added that government had not come to the table to discuss how the industry or commuters could be subsidised during this time. “We don’t want to go against government or the president, but we are losing business and if someone can come with a better idea, so be it,” Jones said.
Fin24 previously reported that Santaco had earlier asked government for compensation of R250 a day for taxi operators due to lockdown losses. – News24 Wire