{"id":628419,"date":"2026-02-09T15:02:24","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T13:02:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/?p=628419"},"modified":"2026-02-09T15:04:31","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T13:04:31","slug":"wi-fi-at-a-taxi-rank-with-no-electricity-in-south-africas-second-oldest-town","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wireless\/628419-wi-fi-at-a-taxi-rank-with-no-electricity-in-south-africas-second-oldest-town.html","title":{"rendered":"Wi-Fi at a taxi rank with no electricity in South Africa’s second-oldest town"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A regional Internet service provider based in Stellenbosch, LiBConnect Africa, has deployed solar-powered Wi-Fi Internet access in a taxi rank where no regular grid connection is available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stellenbosch was founded in 1679 by then-Governor of the Cape Colony, Simon van der Stel, and is South Africa\u2019s second-oldest town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Craig Young, AFR-IX Telecom\u2019s manager for the Southern African region, said LiBConnect\u2019s hotspot at the taxi rank went live on Friday and called it \u201csomething quietly powerful\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLiBConnect rolled out reliable, solar-powered Internet access right where people move, wait, work, and hustle every day,\u201d Young wrote on LinkedIn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTaxi ranks aren\u2019t just transport hubs \u2014 they\u2019re information hubs, economic lifelines, and meeting points for entire communities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Young said part of the strength of the installation was its simplicity, comprising a compact solar setup with batteries, a sturdy pole-mounted access point, and a backhaul connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDrivers checked routes and messages. Commuters connected with family, work, and opportunity. Small moments \u2014 but multiplied hundreds of times over, they add up to real impact.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MyBroadband spoke to LiBConnect Africa founder and executive director, Liberty Bwanali, about the deployment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI started this project at the taxi rank as a gift to the community where I grew up and studied,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs there is no electricity at the rank, the system runs entirely on solar power and our own LiBLithtech Lithium battery system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bwanali said it was raining in Stellenbosch on Monday and that, even on such rainy days, the battery system keeps the network operational.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe boxes contain specialised electronics to manage power generation and network consumption efficiently.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regarding the backhaul connection from the access point, Bwanali said he uses various fibre optic network providers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have built my own infrastructure around Stellenbosch to connect from various sources and locations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Security and vandalism<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Liberty Bwanali, founder and MD of LiBCONNECT Africa<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As for security and vandalism, Bwanali said they work very closely with the community, as the service is vital for local businesses, taxi drivers, and leisure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBecause the community recognises the benefits of these \u2018Internet in a Box\u2019 products, they help secure the equipment for us,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have been piloting this for 1 year and 10 months with no issues regarding theft or vandalism.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bwanali said the community consists of people from several areas, including Cloetesville, Kayamandi, Idas Valley, Pniel, Kylemore, Vlottenburg, Devon Valley, local farms, and the main town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe taxi rank serves as a central meeting point where everyone coexists,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur network ensures that people can bond over time and focus on their work, providing a positive outlet even during quiet or difficult seasons.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said that since they started working together, they have noticed a significant difference in the atmosphere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCrime has gone down considerably, which has helped ensure that everyone using the taxi rank feels safe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the taxi rank project, Bwanali said they also provide home and business services. \u201cWe are proud to go the extra mile to keep the community connected,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe offer several affordable packages. Community members can purchase access starting at R5 for 500MB (valid for 2 days), R10 for 1GB (valid for 3 days), and R20 for 5GB (valid for 6 days).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While LiBConnect initially provided free access to community members to introduce the service, they no longer have a free tier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is to ensure we can maintain the infrastructure,\u201d said Bwanali. \u201cThe community has found the current pricing to be a great deal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LiBConnect, with its Air Fibre and Wi-Fi hotspot services, is among several companies rolling out network infrastructure to underserved communities in the area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fibre providers like Vumatel and Fibertime have rolled out uncapped broadband services in Kayamandi. However, these require electricity to operate.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LiBConnect Africa, a regional Internet service provider in South Africa’s second-oldest town, has deployed a solar-powered Wi-Fi hotspot at an important taxi rank for the nearby communities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":628420,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[103225,103224,103219,103222,103223],"class_list":["post-628419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wireless","tag-afr-ix-telecom","tag-craig-young","tag-libconnect-africa","tag-liberty-bwanali","tag-liblithtech"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/628419"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=628419"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/628419\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":628422,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/628419\/revisions\/628422"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/628420"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=628419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=628419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=628419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}