Fines failing to stop taxi rank’s urinating problem
Laziness, not a lack of facilities, is behind a public urination problem plaguing a Johannesburg taxi rank, according to its treasurer.
A Johannesburg taxi rank is fighting a persistent public urination problem, and the man leading the charge says laziness, not a lack of facilities, is the root cause.
Lebo Makwe, treasurer at the rank, says the problem has been going on for a long time and shows little sign of stopping, despite efforts to curb it.
“We’ve got two toilets, and they are all in working condition. People are just lazy to go to the toilet, especially men.”
The rank has introduced a R500 on-the-spot fine for anyone caught urinating on the walls, and security personnel have been deployed to enforce the rule.
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Police have also been called in on occasion, though Makwe says response times have often been too slow to make a difference.
The fine, however, has proven difficult to collect. “You find that a particular person doesn’t have money. So, sometimes you end up accepting R100, or sometimes you just let it go.”
He acknowledged the danger in going easy on offenders. The smell of urine, he warned, was driving customers away, the very same people causing the problem.
Makwe noted that rank drivers are rarely the culprits. “The drivers know we’ve got toilets. They go to the toilet. You don’t allow any driver to pee on the wall. They know the law.”
The main offenders, he said, are passengers, many of whom are unaware that toilet facilities exist. “We’ve got signs that show where the toilets are, but the person is lazy to go there.”
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