AS war rages between registered commuter omnibuses and pirate taxes, the Bulawayo Public Transporters’ Association (Bupta) has called upon on MPs to intervene and come up with hefty fines to curb the increasing number of unregistered vehicles.
Melody Chimhau Own Correspondent
Registered kombi owners now face the reality of losing business due to the recent increase of pirate taxis around the city, particularly on the routes leading to the eastern suburbs.
When Southern Eye visited Basch Street terminus, popularly known as Egodini, most kombis plying routes to the eastern suburbs were parked.
They bemoaned the laxity of laws in combatting pirating, saying those found using unregistered vehicles were only fined $20.
Bupta secretary-general Albert Ncube said they had lost quite a number of routes and had reduced the number of trips they were making.
“We have lost the Matopos, Newton West, Nust-Sunninghill, Entumbane, Emganwini and Killarney routes to pirate taxis and we fear that soon we will lose our major routes if things continue as they are,” he said.
“We are registered and those people who aren’t should be removed.”
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Most kombi drivers are now opting to be employed by illegal taxi operators since they do not need to produce a lot of documents, putting passengers at risk.
Violent clashes have since occurred between pirate taxi drivers and kombi crews.
Ncube said they were now worried about the safety of drivers as they had been numerous clashes between pirate taxi driver and kombi crews.
“Kombis should form associations to fight this. These are the things which will bring discipline,” he said.
Kombi owners are said to be opting for longer routes such as Pumula, Nkulumane and Cowdray Park, but the competition on those routes is now increasing.
