Are you a taxi operator in South Africa? Or are you interested in this market? Then read on. In this blog post, we will provide you with all the information you need about the South African taxi market.
In South Africa, minibuses are used as taxis. The taxi sector in South Africa is not regulated. Although the South African government has been trying to regulate the sector for several years, it still has not succeeded. One reason why the government is not succeeding in regulating this sector is because cash is paid everywhere. Another reason is that the taxi operators do not pay any tax. This way, the money flows are not transparent.
Unregulated
Because the taxi sector is not regulated, it is difficult to determine the extent. The number of minibuses used as taxis is estimated at 200,000. The number of people working in this sector is estimated at 300,000 and the annual turnover is 90 billion Rand, which is equivalent to five billion euro. Especially the turnover is unclear, because the money flows are not transparent.
No taxi meters
South African minibuses do not use taximeters. The minibuses actually operate as ‘shared vehicles’. This means that the minibuses wait at taxi ranks until there are enough passengers in them. Then the price is divided by the number of passengers. This is cheaper for the passengers. In South Africa, it is generally the poor population that uses the minibuses.
Problems
Another problem that is still very present in South Africa is violence and crime. Also in the taxi sector, there is violence and crime. This is because there is a lot of competition among taxi operators. Taxi owners and drivers do not earn much, so every customer counts.
Future
To solve the problems within the taxi sector, the South African government is trying to regulate the sector. They also want to support the sector financially in the form of subsidies. So far, no plan has been devised to bring this about, but both the government and the taxi sector itself recognise that something needs to change.
Possible solutions
One way to better regulate the market would be to introduce a taximeter or track and trace obligation. Cabman could be of service here with the BCT or MDT. Our equipment offers both a taximeter and the option of track and trace. In addition, our equipment can be linked to an external environment that could possibly store and analyse the data.
Would you like more information?
Would you like more information about the South African taxi market? Or about our taximeters? Please contact us at sales@cabman.eu.