'Passengers must demand safety'

2003-06-18 08:57

Durban - KwaZulu-Natal transport MEC S'bu Ndebele has appealed to taxi passengers to speak out on conditions within the public transport sector, especially the attitude of drivers and the condition of buses and taxis.

"What is more of concern to us is the apparent silence of passengers when dealing with the public transport sector.

"It is your life, do not let others play with it," Ndebele told a memorial service held at Bulwer on Tuesday for the victims of a horrific taxi accident near the Midlands town in May.

"It is worrisome that minibus taxis, that are part of the broader public transport industry, continue to drive people to their deaths," he said.

"In this Bulwer incident, it is actually sad that a taxi driver displayed such arrogance in dealing with his passengers that it led to this horrific crash."

The service remembered the six people who were killed instantly about 23:00 on May 11 when the driver of a taxi allegedly failed to heed a stop sign and drove straight through a T-junction.

The vehicle flew through the air for some distance before coming to a stop about 20m down an embankment.

Eight other occupants suffered serious injury.

They afterwards said they had begged the driver to slow down but he refused to do so.

The driver died.

Hundreds of people including Members of Parliament, mayors from surrounding towns and councillors were in attendance.

Ndebele said the minibus taxi sector was a very important part of the country's public transport system and carried more than 60% of all passengers.

It was also the biggest black empowerment industry in the country and its economic muscle could not be ignored.

- SAPA