The South African Communist Party (SACP) wants an urgent national summit on public transport, and will focus its annual Red October Campaign on accessible, affordable, efficient public transport and road safety for all.
”We call on the Ministry of Transport to convene as a matter of urgency a national summit on public transport to address holistically the challenges of our transport system,” the party said on Wednesday.
In a statement following its national consultative conference with various transport stakeholders on Tuesday, the SACP said a ”complicating factor” was the decline in investment in the rail system, despite an increase in the number of commuters.
Related to the issue of investment was the lack of road maintenance.
The conference had endorsed a number of demands, including coordinated and effective spending on public transport and public transport infrastructure.
This should include amenities at train, taxi and bus stations, proper bus stations in townships, and overhead bridges in communities alongside highways and train lines.
Integrated public transport plans should be drawn up at municipal level, with the establishment of transport authorities funded and empowered to drive the planning, integration, implementation and regulation of public transport systems.
An effective strategy was needed to root out corruption and inefficiency at permit offices, vehicle inspection centres and in traffic policing.
The SACP further demanded a major review of the taxi recapitalisation programme and reaffirmed its call for Sasol’s re-nationalisation in view of increasing oil and fuel prices. — Sapa