Bulawayo pirate taxis regularise operations

A NUMBER of pirate taxis and kombis in Bulawayo are reportedly jostling to register with transport associations to regularise their operations to avoid having their vehicles impounded.

The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) and Bulawayo Municipal Police recently launched a joint operation against taxis and kombis operating illegally in the city.

The operation seeks to restore sanity in the central business district by closing illegal ranks.

A pirate taxi driver, Methembe Maphosa, said they had been encouraging their employers  to register their vehicles with transport associations.

"In the past few weeks it has been hard to work if your vehicle was not registered under any transport association," Maphosa said.

"The police officers and the BCC officers are all over town clamping pirate commuter omnibuses which has led a number of these vehicles opting to register," he said.

Tshova Mubaiwa Transport Association marketing director,  Ndabazabo Mabunda, said a number of commuter omnibuses had registered with the association since the operation was launched.

"We encourage commuter omnibus operators to register their vehicles with any of the transport associations that we have in Bulawayo," he said.

Vuka Uzimele Transport Association marshal, Nhlanhla Ndlovu, said they had come together as touts to register their own association.

 "A lot of commuter omnibuses which have been operating as pirate taxis (umshikashika) have managed to register with our association," Ndlovu said.

"As we started operating in the last three weeks, we have seen that a majority of commuter omnibus owners have registered with us which is a sign that people prefer this transport association."

Bulawayo City Transit Transport vice-chairperson,  Daniel Phondo, said it was pleasing that sanity was being restored in the transport industry.

"The mushikashika or private operators should be blocked from operating and we hope that each association will have its own route at Egodini rank," he said.