Uber sub-Saharan Africa GM Alon Lits and Africa public policy manager Jabavu Heshu told MPs the National Land Transport Act was outdated and asked that it be amended to keep up with transport trends. Lits said section 66 of the act recognised Uber as a "metered taxi service", but this was problematic because it was not entirely reflective of the company business model and modus operandi.
"We have battled to see where a transport network operator falls in terms of category. Where in the act are we? We are aligned with the national Department of Transport as a meter service so far, but none of the existing categories uniquely capture an Uber partner," he said. Section 66 states that a transport MEC may determine a fare structure for a metered taxi service and publish it in the provincial gazette. Section 67 stipulates that an operator must apply for a licence.
Heshu said Uber sought to give its partner drivers access to credit so they could buy vehicles to get into private transport services, and the company was also working on getting its partners licensed.
In recent months Uber has met resistance from meter cab operators, who complained that their traditional clients had abandoned their services in favour of the firm which rendered a cashless and cheaper offering. Uber has also come under fire for supposedly using unlicensed drivers, which placed it in contravention of provincial legislation and municipal by-laws.
The Gauteng and Western Cape governments had to wade into the dispute and calm the waters.
Inkatha Freedom Party MP Khethamabala Sithole said amending the transport act "might have an adverse impact on other operators and meter cab services". It would have "farreaching implications".
Democratic Alliance MP Manny de Freitas said Uber could not forgo the obligation to have licensed drivers, as efficient as the service may be.
African National Congress MP Mtikeni Sibande said: "Who is Uber? Too many people think that when they come into this country and say jump, we will ask how high, because they are coming with new technologies."
City of Johannesburg spokeswoman Lisa Seftel said although the metro continued to facilitate discussions between metered taxi operators and Uber, it believed that the playing field needed to be levelled.
Spokesman for the Western Cape's transport department, Byron la Hoe, said the provincial government was working to resolve the matter of unlicensed Uber drivers.
Source: Business Day
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