Taxi wars frustrate mineworkers

Northam – A dispute between rival taxi associations negatively affected the mobility of local mine employees. On Tuesday 15 June, rival taxi operators from the Northam and Thabazimbi taxi associations blocked the road between the R510 and Chromite Smashblock following disagreements over operating routes. 

Apparently, the taxi operators from Northam were claiming the route as theirs and insisted they would not share it with operators affiliated to the Thabazimbi Taxi Association. As the disagreements raged on, none of the taxis could ferry any passengers. This left many mineworkers, who rely on taxis for transport, stranded. 

The workers were visibly frustrated as they were unable to travel either in or out of the Smashblock area. It took the intervention of personnel from the South African Police Services (SAPS) and Northam Provincial Traffic Department to broker an agreement between the two associations.

Vispol commander captain Zazayokwe played a leading role in resolving the matter peacefully. After much persuading, taxi operators from both associations eventually agreed to remove more than fifty taxis that were blocking the entire road. This allowed for transport operations to resume.