On Wednesday, 17 March 2021, the City of Cape Town’s Mayoral Committee Member for Transport, Alderman Felicity Purchase and the Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Management, Alderman Grant Twigg, went on a walk about at the Dunoon Public Transport Interchange (PTI), commonly known as the taxi rank. The facility is under construction and the first phase was completed recently. The PTI is located on the corner of Potsdam and Dumani Roads.
The construction of the first phase commenced in 2019.
The cost of this new facility is estimated to be approximately R40 million.
The new taxi rank boasts formal trading kiosks, public ablution facilities, three offices, a boardroom, a designated enforcement office and loading facilities for the minibus-taxis.
‘This project is the true epitome of resilience. Despite all the challenges due to protests and the lockdown that was enforced in response to Covid-19, we have managed to complete it, albeit slightly delayed. It was not easy as we had to increase our security costs, for one, to ensure that we keep to our commitment of delivering a service to our residents at all costs. Thousands of commuters from Dunoon rely heavily on the taxis to get to work, school, medical centres, and so forth. We wanted to improve the commuters’ experience and the convenience of using the minibus-taxis. They can now come to a formal structure that is designed to ensure that operations are more organised,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Transport, Alderman Felicity Purchase.
The minibus-taxi industry is a key stakeholder in the public transport sphere in South Africa and we want to ensure that taxi operators work from a descent facility, a place that they are proud of. Taxis started operating from the facility recently and there’s already a remarkable difference in congestion, especially in the area where this facility is located,’ said Alderman Purchase.
The second phase of the project is already in full swing and is scheduled to be completed by June 2021, pending unforeseen delays. Currently, paving and civil works are under way.
‘Every construction project comes with a level of inconvenience, and this project is no different. I thank our residents and commuters for their patience during the construction period. Together we can make progress possible,’ said Alderman Purchase.
‘The Urban Management Directorate welcomes this infrastructural initiative by the Transport colleagues. Providing trading spaces and kiosks for informal traders within the broader development shows the City’s commitment to local economic development. We would like to encourage all the people in Dunoon, the informal trader association and the taxi industry to take ownership of this project and make it a thriving community space that they can be proud of,’ said Alderman Grant Twigg, the Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Management.