implementation
10 April 2006
Government is moving swiftly with the Taxi Recapitalisation Programme (TRP).
The programme has entered a critical stage of implementation. The key pillars
of the roll-out strategy are the scrapping of old taxi vehicles, the
introduction of new and safe vehicles, effective regulations, empowerment of
the taxi industry and law enforcement. This strategy recognises that the TRP is
not only about the replacement of old vehicles with new and safe vehicles, but
presents Government with the opportunity to transform, empower and regulate the
industry. Attempts to evaluate progress of the TRP on the basis of doubts
expressed by certain vehicle manufacturers are not only mischievous and
misleading to the public, but reflect lack of appreciation of both the complex
nature of the TRP and the significant progress made by Government since the
adoption by Cabinet of the strategy to rollout the TRP in July 2005.
Key achievements to date is the publication of Safety Requirements in the
second half of 2005, the issuing in December 2005 of a tender for the
establishment of a scrapping agency and a public campaign aimed at mobilising
taxi operators to convert their permits into operating licenses. Today,
thousands more taxi operators have moved significantly with the process of
converting their permits, the tender has since closed and currently being
evaluated with the view to create a mechanism to scrap 10 000 of the old taxi
vehicles, the National Land Transport Transition Amendment Bill is before
Parliament to enable Government to implement the TRP, and most importantly, we
are seeing the entry into the market of new and safe vehicles that begin to
respond to the Safety Requirements published by the Minister of Transport, Mr
Jeff Radebe.
Whilst some of the vehicles are not yet fully compliant, there is agreement
between Government and the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of
Southern Africa (NAAMSA) that new vehicles will need to be compliant by 1 July
2006. This date was part of agreements reached between Government and NAAMSA
lead by Minister Jeff Radebe and Dr Van Zyl respectively in mid 2005.
A large proportion of vehicles entering the market are those with bigger
seating capacities of 18 to 28 (midi buses). With the addition of few safety
requirements like seatbelts and driver operated door, taxi vehicles in the midi
bus category would comply with the safety requirements. The South African
Bureau of Standards (SABS) is currently finalising national standards for some
of the safety requirements such as rollover protectors; anti-tyre burst
stabilisers and tamper proof speed governors. Once national standards have been
developed in some of these areas, further regulations would be introduced to
enhance the safety of vehicles.
As part of the implementation of the safety requirements, the Department is
pleased to announce that the SABS has on Tuesday, 4 April 2006, reported that
the Toyota Quantum which falls in the range of a vehicle of the lower seating
range 9-16 (minibus) is capable of having the Type II braking system. This
safety requirement was one of the four being investigated by the SABS, and the
Department will now proceed to introduce this safety requirement.
The introduction of safety requirements is not a totally new phenomenon, as
some of the vehicles especially in the midi bus category currently available in
the market meet some of the key legislated requirements. However, the
introduction of compliant minibuses into the market is slower than that of midi
buses because this category calls for the possible re-design of these vehicles.
It is expected in the second half of the year, compliant minibuses would be
available in the market.
These are targeted interventions by the Department of Transport that define
the TRP. The Department's assessment of progress being made is positive and
contrasts sharply with the pessimism contained in the article by Roy Cokayne in
the Business Report of 7 April 2006. We remain convinced that through
partnership and ongoing consultations with the relevant players, further
milestones will be achieved in the course of the year.
The failure by certain vehicle manufacturers to prepare themselves and
comply with the Safety Requirements does not and should not in any way result
in the TRP "running into trouble" as asserted by Roy Cokayne. The truth is most
manufacturers are working tirelessly to comply with these safety requirements
by the agreed date with Government. Government does not believe that there is a
crisis and that concerns by certain manufacturers will lead to a situation
where there is lack of availability of vehicles for the taxi market.
The publication of compulsory safety requirements was preceded by extensive
consultations between Government, the taxi industry and vehicle manufactures
represented by the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of Southern
Africa. The consultation process with the affected stakeholders particularly
NAAMSA solicited inputs in both the finalisation of the Safety Requirements and
the actual drafting of Regulations that introduced these safety requirements.
Government is satisfied with the level of consultations and the inputs made by
the automobile manufacturers during this process. The introduction of the
safety requirements was not done arbitrarily and recklessly, but was rather
based on detailed analysis of available data and submissions, which informed
the introduction of these safety requirements.
However, this is a complex programme that requires adjustments, refinement,
ongoing consultations and effective communication by Government targeted at
taxi operators, commuters (users), financial institutions and vehicle
manufacturers.
Government is committed to finding solutions and willing to address genuine
concerns on the part of vehicle manufacturers who show commitment and
intentions to implement its Safety Requirements.
To this end, Government will be meeting with the taxi industry, vehicle
manufacturers and financial institutions over the next few days with the view
to addressing some of the concerns; seek solutions and explore real
possibilities to take the programme to even greater heights. Among the concerns
to be addressed is the affordable of new taxi vehicles. Government is also
exploring other options through structures like the Industrial Development
Corporation (IDC) to assist the industry to be able to recapitalise its
fleet.
The parties will issue a statement after these discussions.
Enquiries:
Collen Msibi
Cell: 082 414 5279
Issued by: Department of Transport
10 April 2006
