MEDIA STATEMENT

NQUTHU TAXI DRIVERS AND OWNERS GRADUATE

Road crashes have become almost a part of South Africa's public transport landscape. Ever so frequently do we hear, see or read about a bus or taxi that has overturned and killed numerous passengers in the process. The Department of Transport condemns these kinds of incidents as they are unnecessary and totally uncalled for. Passengers board taxis and buses to reach the destinations safely and comfortably not to be harassed and ultimately killed in road crashes.

This morning, (Saturday, June 14, 2003), one of the rear wheels of a minibus taxi came off completely and the vehicle overturned in the Dalbridge area on the Southern Freeway in Durban. A passenger was killed and 19 others injured. Two of the passengers were seriously injured and rushed to hospitals in the vicinity. The driver will be charged with culpable homicide and overloading as his vehicle was certified to carry only 16 people including him.

The Department of Transport has realized that enforcement alone without engaging the taxi industry will not solve these problems completely. It is for this reason, that KZN Department of Transport has already done a pilot project in Nquthu training 150 taxi drivers and 150 taxi owners in road safety, customer service and business development and management.

"I am proud to say that of all the people who registered for this course we have had 100 percent attendance and participation. We did this with the cooperation from the local Municipality and the local taxi industry. The department has invested R1.2 million in this groundbreaking project- a first in the whole country - and its success has guaranteed that we will be extending the venture to other regions of KZN and to other provinces," said S'bu Ndebele, KZN Transport MEC.

Through this scheme, we want to change the mindset of some of our taxi operators who still do not value the lives of their costumers - the commuters, says Mr. Ndebele.

"It still appears to them that the most important people are those still outside of their vehicles. The moment you get on board you seize to be important to them. They will race with you and endanger your life on board.

Clearly, this does not have to be," says Mr. Ndebele.

As a province we have lost over sixty people in road crashes involving taxis, alone, in the past year. These are sixty-something lives that were still productive and would have assisted in the reconstruction of this province and country. Each year the KZN province looses over two billion rand due to road crashes. This is money lost that could be used for other constructive things in our province.

"We have observed that since the training finished at the end of March this year, there have been no crashes or other horrible incidents involving the trained groups. This is obviously a sign that the training has been successful," said Ndebele.

Tomorrow, Sunday, 15 June 2003, will be the graduation for these 300 people at the Nquthu Stadium in Northern Natal. Minister S'bu Ndebele, the executive of the KwaZulu- Natal Taxi Council, representative of the Transport Education and Training Authority and the taxi industry at large will be in attendance. The proceedings will start at 09h00.

Facts to consider

1. R1.2 Million rand was spent on the pilot project
2. The Owner training was done by Damelin, Dreamteam, Muzmor
3. Tresad Company from Potchefstroom trained the taxi drivers.
4. Training occurred between 10 February and the end of March 2003.
5. There are 22 000 minibus taxis in the Province
6. In Nquthu there are 475 minibus taxis
7. The taxi industry in KZN spends over R2.5 Million monthly on fuel.
8. The taxi industry in KZN spends over R20 million per month on insurance.
9. The taxi industry in KZN spends over R2.5 Million monthly on repairs.
10. The trainees will receive SAQA recognized certificates.

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