Taxi drivers fear for their lives following Meyerton shooting
On Tuesday, police revealed preliminary investigations suggest that two security companies allegedly hired by rival taxi associations fired at each other during the morning rush.
Police have recovered ten high-calibre firearms at the Meyerton taxi rank, following a suspected shootout between security companies on Tuesday 20 May 2025. Picture: Mongezi Koko/EWN
JOHANNESBURG - Taxi drivers in Meyerton said they fear for their lives after a shootout at their rank.
On Tuesday, police revealed preliminary investigations suggest that two security companies allegedly hired by rival taxi associations fired at each other during the morning rush.
No one was killed, but several people were injured and vehicles were damaged.
The rank remained cordoned off for most of the day, as police collected spent bullet casings and interviewed witnesses.
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Ten firearms, including AK-47s and a handgun, were recovered at the scene.
Commuters who frequent the rank said they're traumatised - but it's the drivers who said they're most exposed and afraid, describing the tension between taxi groups as a 'ticking timebomb'.
"We are suffering for money we don't know about, we are scared for our lives, we are scared for our friends' lives, we are scared for commuters' lives, they don't even want to get in our cars."
Police said early information from the scene suggests the shootout was part of an ongoing dispute between rival associations competing for control of routes.
Detectives are now trying to establish who deployed the armed security teams and whether the companies operated within legal bounds.