An interim interdict has been granted to several applicants in the e-hailing taxi sector specifying that members of the Tshwane Metro Police are prohibited from giving them fines or confiscating and impounding their vehicles.

This is until the Gauteng Department of Transport has made it possible for these applicants to apply and obtain permits for operating public transport vehicles, Pretoria Rekord reports.

Today, Wanatu e-hailers will take to the road again. The metro will not be able to fine them or other e-hailer applicants included in the interdict or impound their cars.

“This is a victory for every e-commuter driver in Tshwane. The city cannot punish drivers for a delay they did not cause,” said Judith van der Walt, CEO of Wanatu.

“I am relieved and overwhelmed that we will be back on the road. We are committed to complying with all regulations. This is why we are not only fighting for our company but also for the rights of the e-commuter drivers who stood with us. Our customers miss us, and our drivers cannot wait to serve their calling again,” said Van der Walt.

She expressed deep gratitude to AfriForum for covering their legal fees and for making this court victory possible.

“Thank you for making this possible and ensuring that justice is served.”

This interdict was sought on February 19 by members of e-hailing operators like Wanatu, as well as seven individual applicants in the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria.

Their objective was to prevent law enforcement officials from fining them and impounding their vehicles for operating without a legal permit as they are at present unable to apply for permits to legally operate as public transport operators.

This follows the impounding of six public transport vehicles by the metro police for operating without a valid permit earlier in February.

Impounding operations by TMPD of Wanatu e-hailing vehicles this morning in Centurion. The drivers were operating without permits. We do NOT discriminate when enforcing by-laws in Tshwane. @CityTshwane pic.twitter.com/o2Zxc0KJWZ

— Dr Nasiphi Moya (@nasiphim) February 5, 2025

Arno Roodt from Hurter Spies Inc. told Pretoria Rekord that the interim interdict will be followed by a main application to the court to instruct the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport to open their offices and enable their systems to receive and process applications from e-hailing operators.

This application to the court by attorneys for the e-hailing sector must be filed within two weeks.

‘Impossible to apply for a permit’

Leader of the Vryheidsfront Plus in the council Grandi Theunissen, who has investigated the issue of e-hailing applicants not being able to apply for permits, said he is glad that reasonableness prevailed in court and that there is an interim interdict.

“I am all for the enforcement of laws and by-laws but sometimes there are areas of concern that officials must take into account and not blindly enforce a law. These applicants could not apply and obtain a permit because it was made impossible for them to do so. They wanted to keep to the law but it was not possible. This is an occasion where officials should have used their discretion.”

The court application for the interdict followed Tshwane metro transport mayoral committee member, Tlangi Mogale’s recent meetings when he met representatives from the e-hailing sector including drivers and operators, as well as taxi operators and driver associations after the impoundments.

The meeting followed complaints by Uber, Bolt and inDrive drivers against the impoundment by the metro police.

Permit backlog leaves drivers in limbo

These drivers are unable to obtain a permit because they face a backlog in the issuing of permits due to a notice by an official of the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport dated December 18, 2024.

This notice suspending services to new applicants was sent to permit registration and application offices of the department such as the service centre of the Tshwane Transport Operating Licence Administrative Bodies (TOLAB).

TOLABs are one-stop service centres for public transport licensing services. They function to receive, process and award road transport operating licences.

The notice of the department instructs officials to put a temporary stop to the registration of vehicles of new members.

In this letter, it is specified that this applies to applications by new operators in the minibus, e-hailing, scholar, charter, metered taxi, bus, contracted and tuk-tuk modes of public transport.

The notice gives a reason that a backlog needs to be addressed before new registrations will be done.

In working away from this backlog, it is indicated in the notice that applications by minibus taxi-type operators will enjoy priority.

Services will per the notice still however be available at the offices of the provincial authorities for those operators with existing licences who want to renew, transfer, amend or their licences.

Pretoria Rekord visited the office of the Gauteng Department of Roads Transport on the second floor of the Absa building in Lilian Ngoyi Street in the city centre with Theunissen, on the day that the request for the interdict was submitted in court.

At this office, with its five separate service counters, all applications for permits for public transport vehicles can usually be made, except as per the notice, from December 18, 2024, by new operators.

Upon enquiry to officials of the Gauteng Department of Transport at these offices why no permits are currently given to new operators, it was communicated that the reason is a new system for the issuing of such permits is currently being developed and must still be implemented.

Application for permits, renewals or transfers of permits cannot be done online. A permit lasts for seven years for public transport vehicles.

Even though the permits are issued by the provincial department, law enforcement can be done by a local government like the metro as driving a vehicle for public transport without a permit is a transgression according to municipal by-laws.

Call for action to fix licensing crisis

Theunissen wanted to inspect these offices to see for himself what the problems are in obtaining a permit as he believes it is the responsibility of the lawmakers to provide the facilities to legalise operations.

He said during the visit, that people who are trying to make an honest living by providing public transport and a service to the public, are now becoming victims.

“Once more, this is proof of incompetent administration, which is the cause of public suffering. I urge the metro police management to engage with the provincial Gauteng authorities to assist in resolving the matter in a fair and amicable manner,” said Theunissen.

An enquiry has been made by Pretoria Rekord to the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport and the metro police but no answers had been received by time of publication.

WATCH: Grandi Theunissen during his visit to the authorities:

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