Responding to calls by the local metered taxi industry to halt the operation of taxis registered with international public transport group Uber, the Department of Transport (DoT) says its hands remain tied until further legislative clarity around the licensing of these taxi operators under the National Land Transport Act (NLTA) – currently tabled before Parliament – had been provided.

“The reality is that, even [though] we don’t provide for [these taxis] in our legislation, they will continue to exist, as they are difficult to identify . . .  we can’t stop them . . . how can we shut them down?” DoT public transport regulations director Muzi Simelane told a meeting of the DoT Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Charter Council on Wednesday.

Local metered taxi associations had, in recent weeks, intensified their opposition against what they described as anticompetitive behaviour by the US-based taxi company, which allowed local drivers to register as taxi operators and connect with potential customers through a mobile app.

Pending amendments to the NLTA to accommodate e-hailing – the ability of customers to book a trip or hail a ride electronically – drivers who had been granted operating licences under the Act’s Charter Services provision were able to operate legally.

This provision outlined terms for a “car-plus-driver” and covered trips that had been prebooked and in cases where the charge had been arranged prior to the trip.

Acknowledging opposition from the metered taxi industry, Simelane said the department was investigating mechanisms through which the metered taxi industry could be better legislated to avoid anticompetitive behaviour, noting that he was hopeful that clarity would be provided in this sense once Parliament had approved amendments to the draft NLTA.

“We have met with the metered taxi industry, who is angry and said we should close down Uber . . . but we can’t [just] shut it down, as it will continue to operate [regardless].

“We have reported these concerns to the Transport Minister and are looking at the system and the possibility of [introducing specific legislation] or a subcategory under the Act for technologically operated taxi services,” he held.

Simelane further confirmed that the DoT was investigating the possibility of developing and introducing an app specifically designed for local metered taxi operators.

Committee meeting chairperson and former South African Transport and Allied Workers' Union general secretary Randall Howard, meanwhile, noted “with serious concern” the impact of Uber’s arrival in the South African public transport services sector.

He further called for regulatory consistency and clarity at a national level to ensure the effective legislation of the industry and to protect the interests of local operators.

“If you want consistency, you need regulations. Whether or not it is the correct approach to make it a subcategory of the Act’s Charter Services provision . . . we must make an attempt to regulate clearly on a national [basis] so that it doesn’t violate existing transport laws.

“We [already] have a metered taxi industry, and it’s difficult to monitor something that arrives through an app, with no gazetting or public comment and is just in the transport system overnight. We don’t want to set a precedent where people can just walk into our economic space,” he commented.

Gauteng MEC for Roads and Transport Ismail Vadi, together with MMC for Transport in the City of Johannesburg Christine Walters earlier this month held talks with Uber and the Gauteng Metered Taxi Council (GMTC) to discuss the perceived competitive threat that Uber posed to metered taxis and the resultant ongoing intimidation of Uber partner-drivers at selected pick-up points in the province.

The province said in a statement at the time that both parties had agreed to take “active measures” to prevent any further acts of intimidation or provocation against one another.

They further agreed to consider proposals from government, Uber and the GMTC on the future registration and operation of Uber partners and how current metered taxi operators could be incorporated onto the Uber platform to balance the playing field between stakeholders operating in the same transport space.