“One billion rand of busways are to be built between Table View and the Central City over the next few years and a safe and affordable world class bus service will operate sixteen hours per day on these dedicated lanes.”

In response to criticism from the Table View Ratepayers Association (TVRA), Neilson said the council recognised the risks involved in such a project, especially the risk of reaction of the taxi industry.

“Council is actively addressing those risks by upfront discussion with the taxi industry and by giving both taxi owners and drivers the opportunity to be part of the project such that they could have a better future.

“But a government that failed to move forward on such a critical matter because of manageable risks would be a government without substance.

“As far as the interim actions on taxis at Bayside and at Sandown Road are concerned, the actions of the council have so far been justified by the results in the first weeks.

“Allowing taxis to stack on the sidewalk at Bayside has resulted in a marked decrease of taxis in overflow stacking areas as well as far fewer incidents of double parking and blocking of traffic in Blaauwberg Road.”

According to Neilson it is intended to provide a harder surface on the sidewalk area to reduce the mud and dust problems that will otherwise arise.

“Equally, the move of the taxis which stacked on the West Coast Road into Sandown Road has very significantly addressed the very dangerous situation which had arisen on the West Coast Road.

“I do recognise that this has negatively impacted on the residents which back onto Sandown Road, and apologise to them for the lack of direct consultation with them and the inconvenience which they now experience.

“It was a case where matters of safety completely overrode all other considerations. Council is exploring other possibilities for accommodating these taxis, but we could not wait any longer before acting, as people’s lives are at stake.

“Attendant matters such as the need for ablutions and refuse collection are also receiving attention,” he said.

These measures are interim for 18 months, pending the implementation of the BRT project which is expected to roll early in 2010.