A taxi driver was arrested on Wednesday after he was caught transporting 49 schoolchildren in a 16-seater minibus taxi between KwaZulu-Natal’s Mooi River and Estcourt, the Department of Transport said.
What made the situation even worse was that the driver was five times over the legal alcohol limit, said Department of Transport spokesperson Logan Maistry.
“Traffic officers arrested the driver of the minibus taxi, who was transporting learners from Mooi River to Estcourt, early this morning [Wednesday].
“The driver is currently detained at the SAPS in Mooi River,” said Maistry.
He was expected to appear in court on Thursday.
Maistry said the children were so tightly crammed into the taxi they could not even move.
He said Transport Minister Sbu Ndebele had warned public transport operators that dedicated law-enforcement operations targeting specifically public transport vehicles were being intensified.
“Law-enforcement officers will be intensifying operations on public transport, particularly buses, taxis and scholar transport vehicles,” he said. — Sapa