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ZIWAPHI • VOL 3 NO 24 • 4 - 17 DECEMBER  2009

As we went to print, the taxi industry was doing sophisticated stuff. Building a brand in a peaceful business environment.

LangaRide is a catchy brand name. But I would never have associated myself with comfort and safety in minibus taxis if our team did not attend the Fifa Confederation Cup. Langaride is related to another catchy brand name, the Gauride project.

You might have seen minibus taxis on the N4 highway with this brand name, but never understood what they were. What is funny for me is that the leader of the Langaride campaign, Mr Irvin Phenyane, has cruised from managing aeroplanes and airports to managing the revolution of the taxi industry in particular and public transport in general. Before they spread elsewhere, we asked begged to ask the question, what this Langaride is.

Langaride is a program, a registered trademark related and managed by a subsidiary of South African Transport Solutions, the company that ran the Gauride project. According to the Managing Director of SATS N4, Mr Irvin Phenyane, “Gauride was originally free transport for general spectators in Gauteng to get to Confederations Cup 2009 matches at Joburg and Tshwane”. 

Phenyane also proudly explains that “ through Gauride, we showed everyone that the taxi industry can deliver a successful 100%-taxi-and- 100%- black operation. Now the world and South Africa knows that there is absolutely no contradiction between black and success. Moreso, through SATS operating the Gauride, many of our friends, comrades and colleagues now concede that there is no contradiction between the taxi industry success and Fifa’s precion and detail.”

Gauride was also offering free transport from Vaal, East Rand, Pretoria and Mogale City to Ellis Park for matches being played in Joburg. During the Confederations Cup, SATS also managed “iTransie 2 Ellis Park,” ferrying fans from specific park and ride zones around Joburg to Ellis Park. Our team was there and it is such a pity that, Gauride was not extended to take Gauteng ticket holders to matches taking place in Bloemfontein and Rustenburg. The Gauteng provincial government contracted more than 3 000 taxis with a few buses adding to the taxi fleet. Being South African, and prejudiced against the idea of a taxi, we never understood what Mr Mpho Mashinini, the SATS Board Chairperson, meant of Gauride by saying, “we select the best, safe and reliable. We go an extra mile to get you there safe.”

We asked Mr Irvin Phenyane about how their operation will link the various malls, fan parks and park and rides. He explains that there is various consortia working on various details for 2010. We understand that the taxi industry is going to finalise their detailed involvement around January. We are curious to know because Mbombela and Mpumalanga is not known to have foresight in budgeting. The Ziwaphi team that attended the Confed Cup games experienced first hand how the two transport hubs Southgate Mall, in the south of the city, and the Coca-Cola Dome, in the north, were further used to link Johannesburg and Pretoria as Gauride park and rides. Some 3 000 taxi drivers were trained to take part in Gauride. This training included sessions on customer care, first aid and directing people to places of interest across the province.

Ziwaphi acknowledges that  Mbombela has many problems around the management of the 2010 World Cup. On October 9th 2009, Minister of Transport Sibusiso Ndebele seriously noted that the FIFA organising committee has pointed out certain national shortcomings with regard to transport, which became apparent during the Confederations Cup. Thanks to the Gauride initiative that we were not so embarrassed. The CEO of the SATS Group Mr Nkululeko Buthelezi, originally from Mpumalanga, concedes_that when SATS presented a business plan for involvement of the taxi industry in Confederations Cup and 2010 World Cup, “some authorities still perceived taxis as dangerous and never took the proposals serious.”

SATS has surely brought evolutionary change to the transport landscape. The taxi industry was previously involved in large events but at a very small scale. But it is comforting that other key transport priorities highlighted by the Minister include the engagement with the taxi industry to ensure that a new platform is created so that the taxi industry can participate more effectively in the mainstream economy._ According to their official website, Johannesburg-based, South African Transport Solutions (SATS) is a public transport solutions provider with a wide range of skills, expertise and experience in the planning, development and implementation of transport solutions geared at delivering world class, secured and quality public transport. However, SATS N4 is their subsidiary, headed by Phenyane, a local business man who had roles of business development and project management at the KMI Airport; and even a stint as a militant politician.

We now understand why SATS is in the forefront of the taxi industry revolution. Or is it taxi evolution?