Uber vs metered taxis
'What must we do to earn a living?'
Metered taxi drivers have accused Uber and Taxify of exploiting drivers by making rides cheap while the two companies make money from the apps they operate.
Transport Minister Blade Nzimande says the violence between metered taxis, Uber and Taxify, in Gauteng remains a great concern to his department.
On Wednesday, both MEC Ismail Vadi and Community Safety MEC Sizakele Nkosi-Malobane visited the family to send their condolences and support.
The 21-year-old Sports Management student Siyabonga Ngcobo was shoved into his Taxify vehicle on Thursday night and set alight in Sunnyside.
Truck drivers & metered-taxi drivers barricaded the R21 South near the Barbara Road off-ramp and the R24 near Jones Road in the early hours of Friday morning. Police confirmed that more than 30 metered-taxi drivers were arrested.
Police arrested more than 30 metered taxi drivers for public violence after they allegedly torched two Uber vehicles and assaulted their clients.
Saps and JMPD clamped down on service providers without permits in the Sandton Central area.
Two other vehicles were damaged and a driver assaulted during the day in fresh clashes between Uber, Taxify and metered taxi operators.
Police are investigating yet another case of violence between Uber and metered taxi drivers, this time near the Hatfield Gautrain Station.
Minister Joe Maswanganyi met and interacted with taxi operators in Sandton who didn’t hold back in telling the minister their grievances.
Two cars belonging to e-hailing services Uber and Taxify were petrol-bombed near Sandton City shopping centre last week.
Uber says its drivers are fed up with the constant intimidation and violence that they have faced from metered taxi drivers.
Uber drivers attacked metered taxis with rocks after an Uber vehicle was torched allegedly by metered taxi drivers.
Two Uber cars were petrol bombed near the Gautrain Station, allegedly by metered taxi drivers at around 7pm on Thursday night.
An angry group of Uber taxi drivers has now dispersed after pelting taxi operators with stones in the Sandton area while torching others.
Metered taxi drivers have previously called on the government to kick Uber out of the country, saying the service is putting them out of business.
The parties agreed last week to stop acts of intimidation and harassment that claimed the life of an Uber driver a few weeks ago.
Uber driver representative Teresa Munchik says since they are deemed as Uber partners and not employees they should have been invited to the talks.
Transport Minister Joe Maswanganyi announced that his department would ensure taxi drivers who have partnered with app based transport services like Uber abide by the National Land Transport Act.