The spokesperson for community safety, security and liaison, Moeti Mmusi, has urged travellers to stop hitch-hiking.
The provincial police and taxi associations echoed his sentiments. This comes after a number of incidents this year during which people were robbed while hitch-hiking. All these organisations said commuters should use only available public transport and avoid placing their lives in danger by travelling with strangers.

“Many people who ask for lifts from strangers become victims of crime and never reach their destinations. We have had reports of people who were robbed, sexually abused, drugged and killed. We know people sometimes do not have money for transport. However, it must be emphasised that hitch-hiking is not safe for both hitch-hikers and motorists,” Mmusi said.

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In the latest incident, two men were shot and killed while trying to rob a man looking for a lift on the N4 outside Mbombela.
In another, a 32-year-old woman escaped with her life from her capturer who gave her a lift as she was hitch-hiking near the end of May.
Another victim, a 34-year-old man, was hitch-hiking in Chrissiesmeer in March, and was ordered to transfer cash using his bank app before the men giving him a lift fled the scene.
Two young women, Nondumiso Zenani (25) and Nolwazi Hlabane (26), were found alive after they had allegedly been kidnapped last week in two separate incidents in Barberton and Thekwane South near KaNyamazane. Both were hitch-hiking.

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Mmusi said they are aware that some of the incidents are not reported to the police, but stressed that the reported cases show that hiking is not safe. Commuters also sometimes get caught in crossfire between motorists and taxi operators.

The SA National Taxi Association’s (Santaco) provincial spokesperson, Muntu Gama, said they always advise people to use the taxi rank to avoid being robbed by motorists. It is also safer to use public transport as incidents can be traced.

“We try to patrol the hitchhiking spot to make sure commuters use the taxi rank to catch a taxi. People who are vulnerable are those who are travelling for a long distance and we also prioritise those areas. All the taxis travelling outside the Ehlanzeni region are registered, as well as long-distance travellers, in case something happens, so their families can be contacted,” Gama said. He said taxi operators have rescued people in the past who were robbed by motorists who gave them lifts.

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A provincial police spokesperson, Brig Selvy Mohlala, raised concerns about some members of the community who continue to disregard countless pleas to avoid hitch-hiking and falling prey to criminals “who roam around looking for those they can devour. We are very concerned that even after constantly urging our people not to hitch-hike, they continue to do so. We hope people will to learn from these experiences and try to use safer modes of transport regardless of the costs,” Mohlala said.

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