Spring is upon us, and the weather is most definately great. What a great weekend and the newspapers are covered with BRT news and ofcourse the fight against crime. I'm certain the new commissioner is impressed with the number of failed robberies, the recent one being at Soweto Orlando. Well stay away from robbery period or with the new Nathi and Cele wrath you are bound to end up in a dust to dust scenario ohhh and dumblings. Anyway it appears that NEWS on Caster are never ending. Besides the R60K she received from the ANC Youth League, which was from annonymous sponsors. It appears that her family will also be getting a house, now n ot going to politicise this but it made me wonder about Motjali ( the area were Caster hails from). Now how is service delivery in that area? Besides there is also a village in Limpopo that was adopdted by the current cabinet for turn around strategy with regards to service delivery. I wonder if Diepsloot, Newlands, Khayelitsha. Well, too bad for Mulaudzi and Mokoena then.
I'll be honest, I'm happy for Caster but would have preffered if this turnaround in her family fortune came in the form of endorsements that a sign for political trophy. She has most definately put that area on the map, a few things can be used by the municipality and villages that will go beyond Caster family. Besides with the exception of Eastern Cape, the achievement by Caster at Berlin is really a success story for the village. I mean why not just start a Caster Gallery in Motjali showcasing her medals and pics from the media. This can go a long way in changing the livelihoods of the community and perhaps boost tourism in that part of the world. But instead, politicians are rushing for one party glory in the name of Caster and making horrendous remarks in most cases. The municipality needs to think broader on how can they make this opportunity a win for Limpopo that is beyond a party vote. I stand to be corrected but I think Caster will appreciate this much more. Anyway enough about Caster Semenya.
Driving to work this morning, was really a breeze. Taxi drivers are on the "Go slow". Well this means that for once there are more sane people on the road and no one rushing for the next R6 at the expense of commuters lives. Obviously their Go Slow might be good for other road users but the impact is has on society is much greater. Infact it has the potential to damage families, exarcerbate unemployments, and so forth. I could not help it or rationalise taxi owners and drivers actions. Infact it does not make any economic sense. The number of commuters that were stranded today was in my view to huge and beyond even Rea Vaya, Metrobus, or Putco buses. Now with more taxi than buses on the road, while would members of taxi association be on a Go Slow. The population numbers is in their favour, infact besides their driving their price as well is much better in most cases. Talking to our tea lady at work, she told me that she had to cough R11.50 for a bus trip and generally she pays R6.00 for a taxi. Personally I don't buy the argument that buses are taking business and they don't see the benefit. If the issue is really about money of financial implication. All that the taxi associations need to agree on are really few things
1. A R1 increase across the board ( which makes the taxi still cheaper that the bus service)
2. A licence to also use the route for BRT ( This will lead to less congestion on other parts of the road )
3. Training programme for all taxi drivers in line with rules of the country
4. Only roadworthy taxis must be allowed to operate and taxi associations must ensure this themselves
These are only some of the few things that can be done and I think should taxi associations and members apply their mind they would manage to co-exist with any transport mode. This could be beneficial to us beyond 2010. In addition there needs to be a report back on how the industry helped during the Confed Cup. The industry needs to appreciate their role in society, but more than anything else they need to realise that they have a larger role to play in economic development of the country and should not hold the country and commuters at ransom.
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