Good news for Uber and Bolt drivers in South Africa’s richest province

The Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) has begun the process to digitise applications for transport operating licences, which is expected to address one of the biggest frustrations faced by e-hailing drivers.

The GPG recently launched the Gauteng public transport regulatory information system to digitise the processing of operating licences.

Under the new National Land Transport Act, all e-hailing drivers operating on popular apps like Bolt, Uber, and inDrive are required to carry a valid operating licence.

However, drivers have complained that acquiring a licence has proven to be very difficult, with a massive application backlog.

Many of these drivers depend on the apps as their main source of income and continue to operate unlawfully without a licence, risking being stopped by traffic police.

According to EWN, the GPG’s new digital system may help clear the province’s licence backlog, which dates back all the way to 2009.

Gauteng MEC for transport, Kedibone Diale-Tlabela, said the processing of e-hailing licences had become a priority for her department.

“We are saying e-hailing operators should come forward now, to come and apply and regularise themselves,” she said.

“We have prioritised eradicating the illegal operation of public transport services for many reasons. Among those is safety, the conflicts between the taxi industry and e-hailing operations.”

She added that the department had tested the new system over six to eight months, incorporating feedback from e-hailing drivers, bus operators, law enforcement, and the taxi sector.

The MEC said the digital platform would modernise its operating licence system, improve regulatory compliance, and process applications faster.

“This is a system that we believe will eradicate backlog. We will no longer have people providing a public service with a receipt that is unlawful,” Diale-Tlabela said.

New requirements for e-hailing drivers

The amended National Land Transport Act went into effect in September 2025, introducing new safety and compliance requirements for the e-hailing industry.

Companies like Bolt and Uber were required to register their platforms with the Department of Transport, and drivers are required to obtain their own individual operating licences.

The licences stipulate where they are allowed to operate. For example, a driver can accept a trip to another city, but they are prohibited from picking up new passengers in that location. They must first return to their designated zone before accepting new rides.

One reason for this restriction is to appease the taxi industry, which argued that e-hailing drivers were encroaching on their business.

E-hailing drivers also face new safety requirements. They must pass a criminal background check, install panic buttons, and have their cars clearly branded to show they are registered e-hailing operators.