The journey begins South Africa’s vibrant minibus taxi industry was born out of a need for public transport that was created by the apartheid government’s quest to shift black people to the outskirts of its whites-only society.
Black South Africans, forced by law to move to far-flung areas in the 1960s, increasingly needed to find ways to get to economic hubs. Up until 1976 – the year of the Soweto Uprising which profoundly changed the socio-political landscape of South Africa – most business activities were banned from townships. Only seven categories of business ventures were allowed within township boundaries: general dealers, “native” eating houses, restaurants, milkshops, butcheries, greengrocers and hawkers. The majority of South Africa’s residents had to travel many kilometres to business centres for work and other goods and services.
Black entrepreneurs were prohibited from responding to the growing demand for public transport as the government of the day largely refused to grant them road carrier permits.This protected the state-owned rail sector and the subsidised bus industry, which was part publicly and part privately owned
TAXI RIDE PRICES...
| FROM | AGE | FROM | PRICE |
|---|---|---|---|
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | SOUTH GATE | R16.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | NATURENA | R16.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | FREEDOM PARK | R16.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | CLEARWATER | R18.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | ROBERTSHAMI | R16.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | THE GLEN MALL | R17.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | MARLBERTON | R17.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | STEELDALE | R18.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | ALBERTON | R18.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | PRETORIA | R45.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | ORANGE FARM | R21.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | MAJAZANE | R21.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | LENASIA SOUTH | R18.00 |
| NATURENA | 3 - Adulthood | JOHANNESBURG | R19.00 |
| SOUTHGATE | 3 - Adulthood | JOHANNESBURG | R19.00 |
| ROBERTSHAM | 3 - Adulthood | ORANGE FARM | R19.00 |
| BOOYSENS | 3 - Adulthood | JOHANNESBURG | R16.00 |
| BARA TAXI RANK | 3 - Adulthood | CLEARWATER | R18.00 |
As the government found it too expensive to subsidise the growing demand for public transport, it tried to curb costs by limiting buses and trains to peak times and inflexible routes. This made it even more difficult for people to get around.
67 landsbrough Street Southdale, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
Phone: +27 11 339 2521
Email: info@bactoa.co.za