Ngcobo, Eastern Cape — Taxi industry leaders in the Eastern Cape are pushing back against a High Court ruling that mandates new safety protections for long-distance bus drivers operating in and around Ngcobo, a town where tensions between minibus taxi operators and interprovincial bus companies have simmered for years. The Eastern Cape High Court in Mthatha directed the Dr. A.B. Xuma Local Municipality to put concrete safety measures in place for bus drivers, a decision that taxi bosses say treats their industry unfairly.
The ruling comes against a backdrop of escalating danger for bus operators in the region. Bus drivers working routes through Ngcobo have reported living in fear as routine operations grow increasingly hazardous, with sporadic attacks allegedly tied to the long-standing feud between the local taxi industry and long-distance bus operators. The R61 corridor stretching between Cofimvaba and Ngcobo has earned a reputation as a no-go zone for interprovincial bus companies.
Passengers traveling on Intercape buses between Cape Town and other provinces have been restricted to boarding and alighting only in front of the local police station, using specifically marked and visible bays — a precaution that underscores the severity of the security situation.
Taxi bosses say the ruling is one-sided
Representatives of the taxi industry have voiced strong dissatisfaction with the court’s decision, arguing that their sector is being singled out. A spokesperson for the taxi industry insisted that any measures imposed must be fair and equitable, suggesting that the ruling fails to account for the broader dynamics at play between the two transport sectors.
While efforts have been made in recent years to quell the hostilities, the court’s intervention signals that voluntary measures alone have not been sufficient to guarantee the safety of bus drivers and passengers along the contested route.
Municipality rejects claims of powerlessness
Local authorities, meanwhile, have pushed back against the widespread perception that they are unable to act against an industry often described as a law unto itself. A municipal spokesperson acknowledged that frustrations within the taxi sector sometimes lead people to “ventilate and express their frustrations in various ways,” but emphasized that the municipality has been actively engaging with taxi operators to find common ground.
The spokesperson noted that there is no alternative platform for resolving these deep-seated disagreements beyond exploring legal avenues, and affirmed that authorities remain committed to strengthening relationships with both the taxi and bus industries. Both sectors, the municipality stressed, provide a much-needed service to the local community and are essential to the region’s public transport network.
The ruling places the Dr. A.B. Xuma Local Municipality under a legal obligation to act, setting the stage for what could become a defining test of whether court-ordered safety interventions can ease one of the Eastern Cape’s most entrenched transport conflicts.
