The South African Bus Rapid Transit Association (Sabrata) has called on government to review legislation governing the bus rapid transit (BRT) industry, particularly to extend the 12-year bus operating companies’ contracts that are in place across the country.

The contracts will all expire within the next 6 to 12 months.

Sabrata was established in 2017 as a public transport association for BRT service providers. Its members are bus operating companies for the various BRT systems in South Africa.

The current BRT systems’ operating companies are Piotrans Phase 1A and Litsamiaso Phase 1B in Johannesburg; Tshwane Rapid Transit, in Tshwane; Kidrogen and Trans Peninsula, in Cape Town; George Link, in George; and KTVR, in Ekurhuleni.

A further seven BRTs are in the pipeline for eThekwini; Polokwane; Mangaung, Mduduzi, Rustenburg, Mbombela and Buffalo City.

Sabrata is a voluntary, nonprofit organisation and currently has five nonexecutive directors and a CEO, including executives of vehicle operating companies. It protects the interests of BRT operators, allied organisations and commuters.

The association outlined various contractual and tender issues relating to BRT systems around the country in a virtual briefing on December 9.

According to the National Land Transport Transition Act (NLTTA), 12 metros and cities were to implement BRTs.

Sabrata and its members want the current bus operating company contracts to be renewed. The call is made on the basis that the original contracts were not tendered contracts but rather negotiated contracts with the taxi industry where several considerations were taken into account, including the transformation and empowerment of the taxi industry. 

The association does not agree with the idea of going out on tender. “Our call is about addressing imbalances, both past and present, creating a viable framework for bus operating companies across the country and ensuring that there is a level playing field for all operators.”

Sabrata’s concern is that the original legislation was developed on the basis that it would drive the process of empowerment, transformation and restructuring of the national land transport system initiated by the now repealed NLTTA 22 of 2000.

The association’s other concern is with the initial consultations done with taxi owners in 2009, prior to the implementation of the first BRT in Johannesburg, where the contracts were not properly explained. Sabrata believes government did not do enough to explain the contractual terms, cognisant of the fact that the taxi owners had never operated a BRT system before.

“Most of the promises made to our members by government when they joined the BRT have not been fulfilled. For example, there has been no transformation, minimal empowerment and no tangible value chain opportunities, despite a signed Value Chain Framework Agreement in some instances. 

“Government promised that members would be better-off after joining BRT systems, yet the reality is the opposite.

“Our members are now required to respond to an open tender in a competitive bidding process, where they are expected to compete on a clearly unequal and prejudicial basis with persons who, unlike them when they joined, will not be expected to scrap their vehicles, relinquish their permits and be restrained from trading and earning a livelihood,” Sabrata explains.

Sabrata is therefore also calling for uniform standards and conditions across all bus operating company contracts.  Unlike Sabrata’s members whose contracts have a finite duration, there are other players in the public transport sector who have enjoyed the privilege of continuous extension of expired contracts for decades and are not subject to responding to new tenders, the association states.

The association says its concerns are rooted in that the entry points for tender renewal are not equitable.

“In our view, there is no fairness and justice in such a process. The consequences of contract termination are dire for our members. For example, one of the members would have 299 shareholders who will lose a guaranteed income and their jobs, with no chance of obtaining new taxi permits or gaining access to their old routes,” the association notes.

Sabrata adds that the multibillion-rand BRT industry aims to carry about 80% of South Africa’s metro and city commuters, in partnership with the taxi industry.

The long-term benefits of BRT include containing urban sprawl, job creation, promoting social inclusion, improved journey times for all public transport users and reduced pollution.

Sabrata is proposing the automatic contract renewal of BRT operators, as well as for stakeholders to collaboratively create a viable framework and legislation for future operations.