The e-Hailing Partner’s Council (EPCO) has voiced its support for protests taking place in Gauteng today, 23 January 2025, over the impounding of operators’ vehicles.
The provincial government has reportedly been impounding the cars of e-hailing drivers for various infringements, including a lack of operating licences, prompting drivers to go on strike in Pretoria.
What you should know
E-hailing operators have expressed their frustration over the impounding of their cars, calling it an unjust action that must be stopped.
According to a statement released by EPCO, the issue stems from the fact that the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport has allegedly failed to issue operating licences at a reasonable rate, leading to a massive backlog.
Drivers are subsequently being punished for failing to produce a licence even though they have been trying to apply for one for ages, it argues.
“As of the end of last year there was more than approximately twenty-one thousand operating licence applications and the department had only issued nearly nine thousand; this shows that e-hailing operators are keen to comply, however are being let down by the department,” said EPCO.
The department is currently facing a two-year backlog on e-hailing licence applications, despite a memorandum that was imposed four years ago to fast-track applications to resolve the problem.
It has since issued a new memorandum to address its processing issues, but drivers who have yet to receive a licence are still not permitted to operate as an e-hailing service.
This has resulted in multiple vehicles being impounded by metro law enforcement for a lack of compliance, but EPCO argues that the lack of compliance is the result of the department’s slow service.
The e-hailing council has been engaged in talks with the Gauteng Provincial Regulatory Entity, but has yet to come to an agreement over the impound policy.
The dispute has been escalated to the Premier’s office and the National Department of Transport attended by the Deputy Minister, who promised to advance the matter this month.
EPCO states that it is prepared to escalate the situation by seeking a mandate and mobilizing a larger protest to the MEC of Transport, and that it is almost ready to take the matter to court seeking an interdict over the impounding of e-hailing vehicles.
Consumers reliant on transport apps such as Bolt and Uber are advised to expect disruptions to the service while the protests are underway.
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