Transport and Public Works
- (a) How much has the provincial government spent on (a) bus, (b) railway and (c) minibus taxi subsidies and (b) how many commuters benefitted from (a) bus, (b) train and (c) minibus taxi services;
- whether there are plans to start offering subsidies to commuters as opposed to selected service providers; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;
- whether there are plans to increase the subsidy for the minibus taxi industry; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;
- what are his Department’s plans to address the inequalities in the subsidies paid to the different modes of transport?
- (a) The Department of Transport and Public Works (DTPW) is responsible for subsidising certain bus operations in the Western Cape, including those provided by the Golden Arrow Bus Services (GABS) and those provided for the GoGeorge service. DTPW also provides subsidy support for the Dial-a-Ride service through a transfer to the City of Cape Town, which manages this service. The Dial-a-Ride service is a dedicated kerb-to-kerb service for people with disabilities who are unable to access mainstream public transport services
The City of Cape Town is responsible for the MyCiTi service and these services are subsidised by the City, with funding from various sources including the Public Transport Network Grant (PTNG) provided by National Government.
(b) Rail services are the responsibility of National Government and PRASA. These services are subsidised by National Government.
(c) Minibus taxi services do not currently receive a direct operational subsidy
- (b)
(a), (b) & (c)
The DTPW budget for direct subsidies for the 2020/21 financial year is provided below:
- Subsidised bus operator – R1 073 596 000, funded by Public Transport Operating Grant from National Government
- GoGeorge – R156 696 000
- Dial-a-Ride – R10 million transfer to the City of Cape Town
Golden Arrow Bus Services are used by approximately 220,000 passenger trips per day, while the GoGeorge service transports approximately 14,000 passenger trips per day. Dial-a-Ride transports 350 regular users and 2,270 passengers on an ad hoc basis.
- There are currently no plans to provide direct subsidies to commuters. Providing this type of subsidy is extremely complex and is not in line with international best practice. In addition, the current grant frameworks for the Public Transport Operating Grant (PTOG) and the Public Transport Network Grant (PTNG), which are a vital source of public transport funding from National Government, do not make provision for this type of subsidy. However, the Department is considering this approach as part of its ongoing efforts to improve public transport in the Western Cape.
- We agree with the need to provide additional support for the minibus taxi industry and, through the Provincial Sustainable Transport Programme (PSTP), the Department is engaging with the industry to determine how best to improve service quality and safety and build on the success of the partnership established to deliver the Red Dot Taxi service.
- As mentioned above, the Department is engaging with the minibus taxi industry to determine how best to work together to improve service quality and safety
National Government is the primary source of funding for public transport subsidies and we continue to lobby for a new approach to subsidies. Such an approach should address the issue of unequal distribution of subsidies and include new support for minibus taxi services.
