Taxi operators have warned that another shutdown is looming in Pampierstad if unroadworthy buses belonging to Phumatra Transport Enterprises are not removed from the roads.
ANOTHER shutdown is looming in Pampierstad if unroadworthy buses belonging to Phumatra Transport Enterprises are not removed from the roads.
Taxi operators from the Pampierstad Taxi Association and members of the public took part in the Phumatra bus strike on March 10.
The spokesperson for the Socialist Revolutionary Workers Party (SRWP) in the Northern Cape, Thapelo Thole, said the Phumatra buses were not seen at the bus rank this week after a memorandum was handed over to management last week.
“Traffic police were conducting inspections on the road on March 13.”
He stated that commuters who were injured while travelling in these buses also joined the march.
“Taxis operating along routes in Hartswater and Jan Kempdorp were not affected by the strike as most of the accidents happened on Pampierstad routes. If our demands are not met within the deadline of seven days, a bigger shutdown will be enforced.”
According to the memorandum, the SRWP claims that the brakes of the buses are faulty while the tyres are worn.
“The vehicles will not pass road safety tests,” Thole said.
He added that workers who sustained injuries after being involved in accidents while making use of unsafe vehicles were unfairly dismissed.
“Their injuries were never treated as an injury on duty. They should be immediately reinstated.
“The lives of passengers are compromised while they are being exploited for profit. The hand-me-down vehicles that are sent to the Northern Cape from Gauteng must be removed from the road as they are moving coffins. These buses are dangerous and must remain at the depot until they have passed all the safety checks.”
While Thole stated that Phumatra had promised to respond to the grievances in the next seven days, the company did not respond to media enquiries.
