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Pirate taxis give Byo cops torrid time, operators call for stiff penalties

by Staff reporter
16 Oct 2014 at 07:13hrs | Views

BULAWAYO - TRAFFIC cops in the city might face a herculean task of dealing with several rowdy taxi drivers driving unregistered vehicles amid reports that there are more than 750 pirate taxis against 835 registered ones, a daily has reported.

Bulawayo United Public Transporters Association (Bupta) secretary general Albert Ncube yesterday said scores of unregistered transporters illegally pick up passengers at places that include TM Hyper, Robert Mugabe Way, Joshua Mqabuko Street, Leopold Takawira Avenue and 6th Avenue.

Ncube said the pirates steal business from registered operators who wait for passengers at designated points, mainly on the outskirts of the city. He called on the government to tighten laws that regulate public transport to include custodial sentences and impounding pirate taxis.

He further said it seemed government was punishing those who decided to follow the law as they paid more than $500 every year to operate while pirates who paid nothing were being allowed.

"We pay $89 for route approval, $75 for the permit and $150 to Zimra and another $150 for Passenger Insurance. We also pay not less than $200 for fitness test. All this money goes to the government or local authorities to develop road infrastructure for all citizens. Pirates do not pay anything but they get the lion's share of the business," said Ncube.

He said police still had a long way to go in eradicating piracy on the road.

Ncube said unregistered vehicles in the city were now in the habit of covering their registration plates with cardboard boxes or alternatively use old outdated number plates to evade arrest.

Efforts to get comment from the Officer Commanding Traffic in Bulawayo Superintendent Maxwell Chikunguru were fruitless.


Source - Chronicle