Minibus Taxi Industry Research Papers (original) (raw)

This article considers covid-19 and precarity in South Africa's minibus taxi industry. Covid-19 and the resulting national lockdown interrupted the operations of the industry (like other businesses) in South Africa. During the lockdown... more

This article considers covid-19 and precarity in South Africa's minibus taxi industry. Covid-19 and the resulting national lockdown interrupted the operations of the industry (like other businesses) in South Africa. During the lockdown (from level 5 to level 1), some taxi operators complained that the lockdown resulted in them losing profit. Taxi drivers also complained that they are making less money through taxi fares (noting that each day they give collected fares to taxi owners and keep some of the money for petrol). The labour inspectors of the Department of Employment and Labour (DOEL) continue to find it difficult to exercise their role of inspecting working conditions in the industry. Despite the fact that the DOEL issued a Sectoral Determination for the taxi industry (Basic Condition of Employment Act 95 of 1997, Sectoral Determination 11: Taxi Sector 2005), which specifies basic employment conditions, the industry is still predominantly informal and employees have no job protection. Taxi drivers remain exempt from job-related benefits such as the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), which makes it impossible for them to benefit during difficult times such as Covid-19 and unemployment. Therefore, the virus and the lockdown revealed further the precariousness of taxi drivers and the concerns around making profit by taxi owners.

In cities in the emerging world, public transport networks are governed by a large number of agents, each with their own agendas, priorities, incentives and resources, interacting nonlinearly through complex feedback loops. The transport... more

In cities in the emerging world, public transport networks are governed by a large number of agents, each with their own agendas, priorities, incentives and resources, interacting nonlinearly through complex feedback loops. The transport system in these cities have developed into a semi-chaotic self-organizing structure with seemingly unpredictable behaviour to an outside observer. This is due to user agent actions by passengers, independent determination of operating plans and practices by transport operators, and a managing authority exhibiting a lack of will (both political and institutional), to implement adequate control measures to provide regulation and management of these systems. Based on the problems that face transport systems in developing cities and public transport in particular, this paper reports on an attempt to understand the supply of public transport in the Kampala area in a novel manner. We describe a mapping approach using a custom-developed smartphone application which was used to quickly and accurately capture informal transport systems for analysis and study of urban mobility where no dependable data was currently available. Secondly, based on the data created by the study project, to provide insights into the routes, operations and characteristics of the minibus taxi network which convey the majority of Kampala's travelers. Our hypothesis is that by understanding the network in geospatial terms, we will be able to create benefits for all role-players and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the supply of public transport to more closely match the demand for public transport in an emerging world city.

One thing that is common between all sociologists is the notion of uncovering the hidden – the underlying social structures which give rise to that which we see, for example, the precarious working conditions in the minibus taxi industry.... more

One thing that is common between all sociologists is the notion of uncovering the hidden – the underlying social structures which give rise to that which we see, for example, the precarious working conditions in the minibus taxi industry. South Africa’s minibus taxi industry exists inside social institutions – the interrelated arrangement of accepted practices and social jobs to fulfil the social need. The industry is arranged around economic institutions (facilitated by the state) which manage economic and property relations. Through social institutions, the state subjects the business to some type of social control (exemplified through regulations, for example licensing of taxis). Within the social structure of the minibus taxi industry, precariousness occurs. In other words, taxi drivers and taxi marshals perform their roles in precarious conditions. Social structure constitutes recurrent, stabilised and orderly relationships. The industry has recurrent precariousness. Taxi owners, taxi drivers and taxi marshals engage in types of behaviour which are recurrent. A social structure consists of norms, status and roles which are manifested in the behaviour of taxi owners, taxi drivers and taxi marshals functioning with the industry. Using South Africa’s minibus taxi industry as an example, this paper uncovers the existence of precarious working conditions in the Global South. While considering precariousness from Guy Standing’s perspective, the author critiques it and explain that precarious existence cannot be generalised. Therefore, the working conditions of the precariat cannot be generalised, as what holds as precariousness in the Global South might not be considered precarious in the Global North.

The article deals with passenger behavior in the Marshrutki in Tbilisi. People which use the minibuses in the capital of Georgia, have a certain way to move and to place themselves in the vehicle. Exploring the idea of proxemic,... more

The article deals with passenger behavior in the Marshrutki in Tbilisi. People which use the minibuses in the capital of Georgia, have a certain way to move and to place themselves in the vehicle. Exploring the idea of proxemic, elaborated by Edward T. Hall, critically, I argue that individuals have certain strategies to deal with the violation of there intimate space. In the Marshrutka this strategies are very elaborated, because the violation of space is inevitable. Thats why there exist a learned passenger behavior in the minibuses in Tbilisi.

Mutuality is at the heart of the continued violence and inequality in South Africa. This historical and anthropological analysis of Cape Town’s taxi associations reveals how mutuality has become strongly connected with violence and... more

Mutuality is at the heart of the continued violence and inequality in South Africa. This historical and anthropological analysis of Cape Town’s taxi associations reveals how mutuality has become strongly connected with violence and economic marginalization. The breakdown of apartheid led to new mutualities along the rural–urban divide, which resulted in taxi wars between ‘urban insiders’ and ‘rural outsiders’. After liberation from apartheid, mutuality within Cape Town’s taxi associations became a central issue in government policy and commercial interests, which contributed to taxi associations becoming mafia-like organizations. This analysis reveals that taxi owners today find themselves in a trickle-up economy characterized by: violent and shifting mutualities; the embrace of illegality and informality as being vital to doing business; and strong economic intervention by the state.

The minibus taxi industry moved from being heavily regulated before 1987 during the apartheid to the period of deregulation in 1987-which led to an increasing number of taxi operators-to the introduction of the Taxi Recapitalisation... more

The minibus taxi industry moved from being heavily regulated before 1987 during the apartheid to the period of deregulation in 1987-which led to an increasing number of taxi operators-to the introduction of the Taxi Recapitalisation Programme (TRP) in 1999 with the purpose of transforming the industry. The TRP was-and continues to bean attempt to respond to the problems and failures of the regulation process. Regulation of the minibus taxi industry is important to ensure that the industry operates according to the laws of South Africa. However, while this is so, there is an increasing number of illegal operators within the industry. This paper is situated in the broader context of my PhD thesis which investigated the impact of the TRP on precarious working conditions within the minibus taxi industry in Johannesburg. Using qualitative research methods, I conducted a total of fifty-eight interviews for my thesis. Results portrayed that most of the minibus taxi operators in the industry continue operating illegally, and thus making it difficult for the state to regulate. Regulation in the industry is sociologically-defined by two categories: social regulations and economic regulations. The industry remains unregulated and situated within the informal sector.

Following the work of Standing (2011), Clarke (2006) and others, I use the precariat theory to define the existence of precarious working conditions within the minibus taxi industry. I use precariousness to describe how the employment... more

Following the work of Standing (2011), Clarke (2006) and others, I use the precariat theory to define the existence of precarious working conditions within the minibus taxi industry. I use precariousness to describe how the employment practices in the industry, labour legislation from the Department of Labour (DoL), regulations and public transport policies by the Department of Transport (DoT) define the nature of the industry. This article is situated in the broader context of my PhD thesis which investigated the impact of the Taxi Recapitalisation Programme (TRP) on precarious working conditions within the minibus taxi industry in Johannesburg. Using qualitative research methods, I conducted a total of fifty-eight interviews for my thesis. Results revealed the existence of precarious working`conditionsworking`conditions within the minibus taxi industry-in the Global South. The article contributes to the study of precarity in the Global South, similar to Clarke (2006) who examined precarious work in post-apartheid South Africa. The minibus taxi industry's labour conditions place its drivers in a position of precarity. This means that taxi drivers are daily exposed to bad working conditions which are not in line with the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA) or the Sectoral Determination (SD) on wages.

This paper presents an innovative way of conducting on-board vehicle surveys for minibus taxis using a mobile app to collect route traces, stop locations and importantly individual trip boarding and alighting pairs. On-board surveys were... more

This paper presents an innovative way of conducting on-board vehicle surveys for minibus taxis using a mobile app to collect route traces, stop locations and importantly individual trip boarding and alighting pairs. On-board surveys were carried out on a city-wide-basis by field teams making use of a mobile application for data collection on operations and passenger activity along an estimated 800 licensed minibus taxi routes in the Cape Town municipal area using a prescribed sampling technique. The core technology itself has already been presented in a paper by Ndibatya, Coetzee and Booysen (SATC, 2016), as well as a follow-up progress presentation by Coetzee (SATC, 2017). This paper is a follow-up on the work presented in 2016 and 2017 by Ndibatya et al (Ndibatya, Coetzee, and Booysen, 2017). It describes the methodology followed for the individual passenger boarding and alighting surveys for minibus taxis at an unprecedented scale and duration. The methodology has significantly advanced due to the ability to now capture the demographics of each passenger boarding and alighting on the vehicles surveyed. Further, this paper presents a number of innovative techniques to analyse and generate reports on the data using geospatial comparisons, machine learning, by means of a custom management tool developed in-house by GoMetro.

Paratransit forms the basis of public transport systems in many of worlds emerging cities. However, there is limited information available on the extent of operations, the route network and passenger demand. Manual passenger counting... more

Paratransit forms the basis of public transport systems in many of worlds emerging cities. However, there is limited information available on the extent of operations, the route network and passenger demand. Manual passenger counting techniques alone do not provide sufficient information on the extent of network coverage and passenger turnover for the routes on a network. Exploring techniques and methodologies to collecting data on paratransit operations using mobile technology helps us get an informed picture of the transportation system, and helps us make smarter choices when it comes to improving the existing system. Application of mobile technology to collect paratransit data in emerging markets has enabled the development of new data sources. These data sources help discover the extent of network coverage and enable the profiling of routes on the network from the collected passenger information. The objective of this paper is to demonstrate a methodology on the application of m...

This article considers covid-19 and precarity in South Africa’s minibus taxi industry. Covid-19 and the resulting national lockdown interrupted the operations of the industry (like other businesses) in South Africa. During the lockdown... more

This article considers covid-19 and precarity in South Africa’s minibus taxi industry. Covid-19 and the resulting national lockdown interrupted the operations of the industry (like other businesses) in South Africa. During the lockdown (from level 5 to level 1), some taxi operators complained that the lockdown resulted in them losing profit. Taxi drivers also complained that they are making less money through taxi fares (noting that each day they give collected fares to taxi owners and keep some of the money for petrol). The labour inspectors of the Department of Employment and Labour (DOEL) continue to find it difficult to exercise their role of inspecting working conditions in the industry. Despite the fact that the DOEL issued a Sectoral Determination for the taxi industry (Basic Condition of Employment Act 95 of 1997, Sectoral Determination 11: Taxi Sector 2005), which specifies basic employment conditions, the industry is still predominantly informal and employees have no job p...

This report on the South African Long Distance Taxi Association (SALDTA) Strategic Planning Retreat of 1989) indicates the choices that SALDTA needs to consider that will increase the effectiveness of the organization, leading to both... more

This report on the South African Long Distance Taxi Association (SALDTA) Strategic Planning Retreat of 1989) indicates the choices that SALDTA needs to consider that will increase the effectiveness of the organization, leading to both increased membership and greater stature.
This report presents:
An overview of the findings from the strategic planning exercise.
Recommendations arising from the strategic management exercise, the discussion over the two days, and the discussion of the constitution.

The minibus taxi industry moved from being heavily regulated before 1987 during the apartheid to the period of deregulation in 1987—which led to an increasing number of taxi operators—to the introduction of the Taxi Recapitalisation... more

The minibus taxi industry moved from being heavily regulated before 1987 during the apartheid to the period of deregulation in 1987—which led to an increasing number of taxi operators—to the introduction of the Taxi Recapitalisation Programme (TRP) in 1999 with the purpose of transforming the industry. The TRP was—and continues to be—an attempt to respond to the problems and failures of the regulation process. Regulation of the minibus taxi industry is important to ensure that the industry operates according to the laws of South Africa. However, while this is so, there is an increasing number of illegal operators within the industry. This paper is situated in the broader context of my PhD thesis which investigated the impact of the TRP on precarious working conditions within the minibus taxi industry in Johannesburg. Using qualitative research methods, I conducted a total of fifty-eight interviews for my thesis. Results portrayed that most of the minibus taxi operators in the indust...

Estudio de la regulación en España de la prestación de transporte que realizan tradicionalmente los taxis y que, en la actualidad, cada vez más, también los VUTCs (Uber, Cabify, etc.). El trabajo analiza las razones de la reserva... more

Estudio de la regulación en España de la prestación de transporte que realizan tradicionalmente los taxis y que, en la actualidad, cada vez más, también los VUTCs (Uber, Cabify, etc.). El trabajo analiza las razones de la reserva tradicional al sector público de esta actividad económica y si subsisten o no hoy en día las razones que justificaban esa publicación, concluyendo que no y que hay que liberalizar poco a poco el sector, homogeneizando la regulación para taxis y VTCs y dejando como única posibilidad para la limitación del número de licencias los problemas de congestión y de contaminación.

Matatu workers, predominantly male and below 35 years of age, contribute an essential part to Kenya’s overall transport of people, goods and ideas. They operate a mode of motorised transport that has been and still is the only affordable... more

Matatu workers, predominantly male and below 35 years of age, contribute an essential part to Kenya’s overall transport of people, goods and ideas. They operate a mode of motorised transport that has been and still is the only affordable option for the majority of the population. Additionally, the matatu workers have been a driving force for mobilising unrest to political currents and work conditions, despite the fierce competition of investors in the huge matatu business. With workplaces at the heart of the city, whenever the transport workers went on strike, most of the residents were stranded and economic activities are paralysed.