Uber drivers say they’re being harassed by minibus taxis

[schumi]

“First I was hijacked at gunpoint, then a week later a [minibus] taxi guy is saying he’s going to impound my car,” says Uber driver Tawonga Chifamba. “It’s a lot we’re going through as Uber drivers.”


Chifamba has been an Uber driver for the past two and a half years.


On Wednesday, 25 September, he had just completed a trip at the University of Western Cape in Bellville. It was about 4:30 pm when he pulled over on the side of the road opposite the main gate to wait for his next trip with a group of five other Uber drivers.


Chifamba figured he would have about 15 minutes before his next trip and began washing his car. Then a minibus taxi driver came over and began taking the keys from the ignition of every car parked there.


“He told us: ‘This is not your rank’,” recalled Chifamba. “He continued, saying: ‘You Uber drivers don’t have to park anywhere, this is our route, this is our rank’.”


The minibus taxi driver then refused to return the car keys and insisted that each driver give him R500.


As this was happening, another Uber driver arrived. The minibus taxi driver then went over to him and threatened to break the window to get the key of the car, according to Chifamba. The Uber driver panicked and began driving away at high-speed towards Robert Sobukwe Road, where he met with an accident after not seeing an oncoming vehicle.


The minibus taxi driver then ran away, leaving everyone’s car keys behind. Chifamba believes that he ran away because “he knew the police were coming”.


“This is what they are actually doing to Uber drivers,” said Chifamba. “At a mall or anywhere they can see that you are Uber drivers, they come and harass you.”


“These [minibus] taxi guys are taking everything into their hands and doing whatever they want on the road. I don’t know who’s going to help us in this industry.”

Although this was the first time Chifamba had experienced something like this since he started working as an Uber driver, it has been happening to Uber drivers more frequently.

“Now we don’t drive to Khayelitsha and Gugulethu,” said Lawrence Ndlovu, who has been an Uber driver for five years. “We’re scared even to drive in Bellville. Those guys are just targeting us.”

Ndlovu had his own encounter outside the University of Western Cape with two men who said they were from the taxi association and were going to impound his vehicle. “I said I want to call the police and that’s when they started to harass me, and tell me to give them money,” said Ndlovu.

Ndlovu said the men threatened to beat him up and then took his phone and the cash from his wallet, which was around R500, before leaving.

More at:

Uber drivers say they’re being harassed by minibus taxis

Taxi association condemns violence

www.groundup.org.za

 

[NarrowBandFtw]

time to introduce a new Uber option next to XL and Black: Uber Apocalypse where the vehicle is guaranteed to mow down the horde attacking it

 

[VooDooC]

Minibus taxi drivers are a law onto themselves and this is not going to end unless our useless government and police do something about it.

Read an article last week where taxi bosses were demanding that the drivers should not be arrested and charged for any wrong doing and that they (the police) should rather come and talk to the taxi bosses, ie we want to do what ever the hell we want and nothing or no one will tell us otherwise.

 

[Gaz{M}]

How exactly to their customer bases overlap? Someone paying R100 for an Uber isn't a R9 taxi ride patreon.

 

[JayM]

How exactly to their customer bases overlap? Someone paying R100 for an Uber isn't a R9 taxi ride patreon.

They don't, but if they can create a monopoly by removing Uber, some people will reluctantly use a R9 taxi instead.

 

[Lucas Buck]

It's really simple. The traffic department can start having officers patrol that stretch of road next to the university to prevent these things from happening. Taxis are not supposed to stay parked there in the first place.

 

[NeonNinja]

They don't, but if they can create a monopoly by removing Uber, some people will reluctantly use a R9 taxi instead.

I can't use taxi at 8pm.

 

[Mista_Mobsta]

It's really simple. The traffic department can start having officers patrol that stretch of road next to the university to prevent these things from happening. Taxis are not supposed to stay parked there in the first place.

I sent a video of metered cab drivers harassing (read ganging up, walking up to UBER cars with knobkierries and threatening them) UBER drivers at the Centurion Gautrain station to the Lyttelton police and guess what happened?
Nada, Zip, Zero, Nothing

 

[Lucas Buck]

I sent a video of metered cab drivers harassing (read ganging up, walking up to UBER cars with knobkierries and threatening them) UBER drivers at the Centurion Gautrain station to the Lyttelton police and guess what happened?
Nada, Zip, Zero, Nothing

Lots of problems could be solved with proper policing but there doesn't seem to be a will to do so..