Transport MEC announces crackdown as taxi plunges off KZN bridge

Twenty learners were injured when a minibus taxi veered off KwaKhetha Bridge along the P127 road at around 7.30 on Monday morning.

The vehicle plunged several metres off the bridge.

The driver fled the scene and is currently being sought by law enforcement agencies.

The injured learners are from Matomela High School, Luthando High School, and Sthunjwana Primary School. They are receiving treatment at Gomane Clinic and Harry Gwala Regional Hospital (also known as Edendale Hospital).

This incident has compounded distress in the Umgungundlovu District, coming just days after four learners were killed in a separate taxi crash last Thursday. Several others from that earlier incident remain hospitalised.

According to the Automobile Association, approximately 70,000 minibus taxis crash each year in South Africa, and these vehicles have twice the crash rate of other passenger cars.

KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Transport and Human Settlements, Siboniso Duma, has called on the South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) in KwaZulu-Natal to engage more proactively on incidents involving taxi operators.

He also announced a new partnership with the Vehicle Testing Association, aimed at improving road safety.

“We have resolved to form a partnership with the Vehicle Testing Association,” Duma said. “The association is a member of the Retail Motor Industry Organisation (RMI) and is responsible for issuing roadworthy certificates in terms of the National Road Traffic Act and SABS 10047.

“We will work together to isolate operators using unroadworthy vehicles and ensure that those issuing fraudulent certificates face prosecution.”

The collaboration, set to launch in October, will introduce mandatory driver vetting, biannual roadworthiness checks, and inspections of all minibus taxis in KwaZulu-Natal.

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