Plans to turn Kyalami taxi rank into a secure haven
KYALAMI - Armed with rakes, plastic bags and spades, volunteers dressed in orange overalls picked up litter and cleaned out the holding area for Kyalami’s taxis located opposite Kyalami Estates on 5 September.
Ward 112 councillor Candice James and her team, including members of the community and some municipal inspectors, headed out for the clean-up.
The operation was arranged and directed by Kyalami Estate manager Gail Kruger, Kyalami Office Park’s estate manager Eddie Crous, and James, who invited municipal entity Pikitup and their volunteers to come to the area.
According to James, the campaign was to build relationships with taxi drivers and members of the Kyalami community.
“The taxi rank is well established here now, we can only better the space and work with all parties to make the situation better,” said James.
Both the estate and the neighbouring office park have come on board, and have provided funds to get the process going.
“Our residents are concerned about taxis parking on the roads and obstructing traffic. Additionally, the litter and vendors on the sides of the roads are making our area look untidy and unsafe,” Kruger said.
James added she was working closely with the municipality to get a permanent solution for the taxi rank and its users. The main problem was the lack of dustbins, the vendor stalls and parking space for taxis.
She aims to bring in shelter for vendors to sell their goods safely, and provide proper rubbish bins for commuters. A secure holding with railings and marked parking bays are also being requested.
Sambulo Aromat Ndllovu is the queue marshal at the taxi rank, he runs the taxi schedule for his side of the road.
“I work here every day, this is my area, we get many complaints from drivers as we are forced to park on the road,” he said. Ndlovu added the municipality needed to give them a permanent solution and provide dustbins and vendor stands to stop rubbish being left behind.
Volunteers cleared up the area and left the space almost spotless, with a firm warning from James and Metro police. Some of the taxi drivers agreed to keep the space free from litter and not allow illegal vendors to hawk on the street.
James additionally promised there would be a municipal meeting held in the near future which will allow taxi drivers, residents and members of the community to comment and let their grievances be heard regarding the taxi rank.
