Taxi associations are set to take charge of the current operations of four MyCiTi routes in Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha following the extension of the City of Cape Town’s contract with the N2 Express Joint Venture Vehicle Operating Company.

According to Brett Herron, the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Transport and Urban Development, the new agreement signifies an important milestone where the taxi associations who are part of the JV will begin to take over the operations of the N2 Express service from the Golden Arrow Bus Service (GABS) in an incremental manner.

The time is now

The N2 Express Joint Venture (JV) Vehicle Operating Company was formed by Codeta in Khayelitsha, the Route 6 Taxi Association in Mitchells Plain, and the Golden Arrow Bus Service (GABS) prior to the roll-out of the four MyCiTi routes to the Metro South-east in July 2014.

The new agreement, which is effective as of 1 March 2018, means that Codeta and the Route 6 Taxi Association will take over the operations of the four N2 Express routes as well as the management of the MyCiTi fleet serving commuters from Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha.

“To date GABS has fulfilled this function and responsibilities, but the time has come for these two partners who form part of the JV to take over this role,” Herron notes.

Long-term contracts in the pipeline

“When we rolled out the N2 Express service in 2014 we started with the mammoth task of bringing decent and affordable public transport to residents who are living on the periphery of the city,” Herron said.

“The extension of the MyCiTi service to the Metro South-east, however, also brought new opportunities to the taxi associations in Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha who were affected by the MyCiTi route roll-out at the time,” he added.

While this process is being implemented, the City will commence with negotiations for the signing of long-term operating contracts for the N2 Express service.