The South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) has identified three key priorities for Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula to fix the country’s ailing transport system.
Mabalula experienced the challenges commuters face on a daily basis in Cape Town on Tuesday.
He was meant to travel by train to Langa, but due to a passenger-related incident at Nyanga Station he was forced to use a shuttle instead.
During the debate on President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address, the minister said he wanted to deal with problems and get Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) “back on track”.
Satawu Deputy General Secretary Anele Kiet believes Mbalula should support Prasa’s turnaround strategy.
“The problem doesn’t necessarily lie with the trains but with management. We agree with what the current CEO is doing with regard to changing the management style within Prasa. He will need support hence we are calling for the Minister Mbalula to provide it.”
Kiet says Mbalula also has to find a solution to the ongoing truck attacks on the N3 highway in KwaZulu-Natal.
If the government subsidises the taxi industry, in the same way it does buses, taxi-related violence would decrease dramatically, Kiet says.
He attributed some of taxi drivers’ reckless behaviour on the roads to the need to cram in as many passengers as possible in order to receive a salary at the end of the month.
*This article was first published on jacarandafm.com