M.Comm. / The Taxi Recapitalisation Programme (TRP) was first announced by the Government in 1999. It was originally recommended by the National Taxi Task Team (NTTT) as a strategy to transform and regulate the South African Combi-Taxi Industry (SACTI) into a “new” taxi industry. Its aims were to improve the quality of combi-taxi transport in South Africa by taking a number of steps, including institutionalising the industry, changing the licencing system, regulating the industry and replacing old vehicles with new ones. Since that time, however the TRP has been plagued by controversy and its implementation has fallen behind schedule. The study‟s key research aim has been to investigate and assess perceptions of taxi associations (taxi owners) with regard to the TRP. The study took place in Temba, near Hammanskraal, approximately 55 kilometres north of Pretoria. Temba is taken as a “microcosm” of SACTI in that it can be regarded as typical of many other areas in the country. A background is provided to the regulatory legislation of the public transport system of the apartheid Government and the general historical and economic development of the SACTI prior to 1994. It deals with the periods from 1930-1976, 1977-1985 and 1986-1993, and then explores the legislative and policy framework of the public transport system of the post-1994 democratic government up to 2008. It introduces the NTTT and its recommendations before analysing the economic effects likely to be felt by taxi associations following implementation of the TRP. The study then presents the results of a brief demographic profile of a sample of taxi owners and operators in the Temba area and identifies a number of factors that influence their attitudes towards the industry in general and their perceptions of the TRP in particular. It assesses the progress made with the implementation of the TRP since its inception and identifies critical issues that have delayed the project. Having been scheduled to span the five years from 2001 to 2005, the date of completion of the TRP was later extended to 2007. By 2010 the project was still only partially complete. Due to repeated delays, the project appeared to be running aground and was perceived by many as a fruitless and wasteful exercise. Indeed, these delays have undermined the goals of transport regulation which, inter alia, were intended to promote the welfare of the public (safety, security, satisfaction, health and protection of property) and to improve the quality of public transport generally. By linking the demographic profile of the taxi owners with the various perceptions, the study has been able to draw conclusions and make findings intended to contribute towards the successful implementation of the TRP and thereby assist SACTI to play a more effective role in the overall transport situation in South Africa. The study concludes that taxi associations in Temba have perceived the TRP to be a good proposal but difficult to implement. It therefore makes a number of recommendations that will hopefully assist in the transformational process of changing SACTI “old” taxi industry into a “new” taxi industry, and so enhance the economic strength of taxi owners and operators, as well as improve the welfare of the users of taxi transport services, not only in Temba but throughout the country.

Unlawful, renegade and detached, these are some of the metaphors that can be said to be the summation of the taxi industry. Albeit the taxi system predominantly operates as the chief transport mode, and economic enabler for its users, it still maintains a predominantly degenerate perception. The focus of this thesis is to emphasize how through re-appropriation and re-defining of the formative and descriptive elements of the taxi industry, one can begin to articulate a logical and befitting identity for the taxi industry. The methodology utilized is based on the principals of identity formulation, and programmatically expressive architecture. The intention of which, is to devise a methodology in which architecture can be used to restructure existing systems in a manner, which enables them to obtain a compelling logic. In so doing, the premise is to illustrate how through the use of design, architecture can be molded into a contrivance for formulate identity. The theoretical point of departure of this thesis is to explore the concept of architecture as the catalytic instrument in the creation, or identification of identity. Taking into consideration the degenerate image that the taxi industry has today, and its pragmatic relevance to society, the thesis aims to formulate programmatic and spatial qualities that begin to elevate the perception of the taxi industry. The design intention, aims to explore the measures in which architecture can be used to begin to redefine the taxi industry, through the uses of spatial articulation that represents the marriage between the public, and the taxi industry in a formal, informal and passive manner. / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Architecture / unrestricted

No description available.

The biggest barrier for expansion and adoption in the field of sharing economy is risk and fear regarding safety. This new company form has resulted in higher competition in the service industry, resulting in increased focus on high quality. Since sharing economy is a new phenomenon a comparison with traditional companies has been made in order to see how the different forms of companies work with quality management. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate how sharing economy companies within ridesharing and on demand rides, compared to traditional taxi companies, work with quality management. The thesis answers three subordinate questions: 1) How do companies work with quality assurance during the recruitment process? 2) How do companies work with continuous quality control and evaluation? 3) Is there a difference between the investigated industries within sharing economy and traditional taxi companies? Based on theories from management control and service quality management a theoretical framework was designed which provides guidance as to how researchers and managers can work with quality management in the service industry. A qualitative study was further performed through semi-structured interviews, where the gathered empirical material was presented through the theoretical framework. One conclusion that can be made in this thesis is that sharing economy companies have automated their services, as well as big parts of their quality management. Traditional companies seem to move more towards automating their services, as well as some parts of their quality control, but many parts are still handled manually. Another conclusion is that both types of companies have differences that lie in the nature of being a traditional company versus being a sharing economy company, and at the same time they have some fundamental similarities.

Background: In recent years, the Swedish taxi industry has undergone a number of changes as a result of increased digitalisation in a deregulated market. Most market players have emerged as a result of the freedom of establishment, which in turn has led to higher competition. Among these new entrants, the ride-hailing business model has had an impact by taking a traditional service and performing it differently. This thesis will thus examine how this approach has affected the Swedish taxi industry in more detail. Purpose: The thesis aims to increase understanding of the aspects of the ride-hailing business model that are specifically distinguished by the company Uber. The following secondary purpose is to identify the impact this specific business model has on the Swedish taxi industry as a result of Uber's establishment on the Swedish market. Method: The thesis is an abductive case study of qualitative character. The empirical data has been collected through three distinct approaches, which are the collection of scientific material, semi-structured interviews with three respondents and a Social Media Analysis consisting of data from approximately 100 independent articles and media publications. Furthermore, these three types of empirical data have been selected via a strategic selection. Conclusion: The result of this thesis shows that the specific aspects that stand out in Uber Sweden's use of the ride-hailing business model are value creation, differentiation, innovation and social acceptance. The results also show that the ride-hailing business model has influenced the Swedish taxi industry in terms of the specific aspects' influence on the development of the taxi market and on government regulations. / Bakgrund: Under de senaste åren har den svenska taximarknaden genomgått en rad förändringar till följd av en ökad digitalisering på en avreglerad marknad. Det har uppkommit flertalet aktörer på marknaden till följd av den fria etableringsrätten, som i sin tur lett till en högre konkurrens. Bland dessa nya aktörer har affärsmodellen ride-hailing fått ett genomslag genom att ta en traditionell tjänst och utföra den annorlunda. Uppsatsen kommer därmed att närmare undersöka hur detta tillvägagångssätt har påverkat den svenska taximarknaden. Syfte: Uppsatsen syftar till att öka förståelsen för de aspekter av ride-hailing-affärsmodellen som specifikt utmärker sig hos företaget Uber. Det följande sekundära syftet avser att identifiera den påverkan som denna specifika affärsmodell haft på den svenska taxibranschen till följd av Ubers etablering på den svenska marknaden. Metod: Uppsatsen är en abduktiv fallstudie av kvalitativ karaktär. Empiri har insamlats via tre distinkta tillvägagångssätt, vilka är insamlande av vetenskapligt material, semistrukturerade intervjuer med tre respondenter samt en Social Media Analys bestående av data från cirka 100 fristående artiklar samt mediala publikationer. Vidare har dessa tre typer av empiriska data valts ut via ett strategiskt urval. Slutsats: Resultatet från denna uppsats visar att de specifika aspekterna som utmärker sig inom Uber Sveriges användning av ride-hailing-affärsmodellen är värdeskapande, differentiering, innovation och social acceptans. Vidare visar resultatet på att ride-hailing-affärsmodellen har påverkat den svenska taximarknaden i avseende på de specifika aspekternas inflytande på utvecklingen av taxibranschen samt kring statliga regleringar.

The South African taxi industry has experienced large-scale growth in the nineteen nineties and increased its share of the passenger transport market to a majority. However, it tends to suffer from various problems and has been subject to interventions from various quarters, the most recent being the Central Government's recapitalization scheme. The aim of this research was to investigate the perceptions of taxi-owners vis-a-vis the Government's Recapitalization Scheme. More specifically, the objectives were: • To critically appraise the government's recapitalization scheme with a view to assessing its impact on the taxi industry • To establish the economic problems that are faced by the taxi industry in achieving development, thereby empowering the industry and • To identify the capacity-building needs of the taxi-owners. Consequently, while recognizing the notion that 'poor understanding of taxi-owners towards the government's recapitalization scheme has led to resistance on their side'; this research maintains that the taxi-owners' main expectation of the government's recapitalization scheme relates to black economic empowerment. Hence, the view that the government should assist the taxi industry to face the current development challenges. Using both qualitative and quantitative methods, the study focused on short distance taxi-owners under Umsunduzi one municipality in Pietermaritzburg. The main focus of this research was on their perceptions towards the proposed government's recapitalization scheme. Of the 137 taxi-owners, representing 21 Associations, in Pietermaritzburg, the majority of the respondents have positive perceptions towards the scheme. One other concern raised was that the proposed vehicles are too big and that the scheme would impact negatively on some owners who operate on routes where there is only a small number of commuters, as a result the new vehicle will take time to fill with the required number of passengers. The other concern was that some of the drivers and conductors, who are sometimes bread-winners in their homes, were going to lose their jobs. However, they felt that to run their businesses effectively, they would benefit from the government assistance in terms of business skills, education and training. The taxi-owners interviewed, felt that the government is taking too long to implement the scheme and they suggested that the government speed up the process. In addition to the recapitalization scheme, the taxi-owners felt that the government should provide the infrastructure for the scheme, for example taxi ranks with facilities. The taxi-owners believe that conflict within the industry is a threat to their business and they felt that the government should assist them in solving this problem. Findings show that taxi-owners in Pietermaritzburg support the proposed recapitalization scheme. However, some of the taxi-owners are still not clear about the whole process of the recapitalization scheme. The taxi-owners suggested therefore, that the government should communicate more with the taxi-owners in order to implement the scheme successfully. Furthermore, government intervention is required so as to capacitate the taxi-owners by providing them with relevant skills. Infrastructure improvement is required so as to make the taxi business viable. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2003.

M. Tech. (Department of Accountancy, Faculty of Management Sciences), Vaal University of Technology. / The minibus taxi industry in South Africa is one of the biggest, fastest growing, and riskiest industries in the world. The minibus taxi industry contributes to the economy by creating over 600,000 jobs, providing fast and cheap transport and fighting poverty and unemployment. However, the recent COVID 19 pandemia restrictions has caused a sudden and movement of economic growth and competition has forced the minibus taxi industry to be competitive in all aspects. This has resulted in intense competition for minibus taxi owners. Minibus taxi owners are constantly in rivalry amongst themselves and with other public road transport providers. In early 1988, the minibus taxi industry started seeing an influx in the number of new minibus taxis and minibus owners. This influx created problems of competition within the industry and among minibus taxi owners. Due to the importance of this industry, this research study investigated whether minibus taxi owners in the Emfuleni Local Municipality apply selected management accounting principles in the management of their minibus taxi businesses. Selected management accounting principles in this study refers to cost volume profit analysis, cost structure, and budgeting. This research study followed a quantitative research design and a questionnaire was used to collect primary data from a census of 500 minibus taxi owners from the following five associations: Get Ahead Taxi Association (GATA), Vaal National Taxi Association (VNTA), Vanderbijlpark Taxi Association (VTA), Sharpeville to Vereeniging and Vanderbijlpark Taxi Association (SVVTA) and Civic Centre Taxi Association (CCTA) operating in the Emfuleni Local Municipality. Using descriptive statistical analysis to present the findings, the study used Statistical Package for Social Sciences Version 27. Findings obtained using an online questionnaire and printed questionnaire distributed revealed a lack of management accounting principles application among these minibus taxi owners. Furthermore, the minibus taxi owners do not apply cost volume profit analysis and most do not use budgets. However, it was found that some minibus taxi owners apply very basic cash budgeting through a pen-on-paper approach. It was also found that minibus taxi owners understand the application of cost structures. This research study recommends that minibus taxi owners should be offered training by skills sectors to apply the selected management accounting principles. The limitations of this research study included that the census was geogracial restrictions, level of education, and corona virus restrictions. Despite these limitations, the research study was able to fulfil its main objective by determining that majority of minibus taxi owners do not apply the selected management accounting principles.

This study aimed at examining the social and economic effects of the Rea Vaya Bus Rapid Transit system (BRT) on various stakeholders in Johannesburg. The objective of the study was to investigate the effect the Rea Vaya has had on users and non-users of the Rea Vaya system. The findings of this study suggest that the Rea Vaya is beneficial in that it provides an option in modes of transport for commuters, particularly for people who were historically disadvantaged and were not permitted to reside in the city during the apartheid era. BRT systems are designed to provide a safe, reliable and accessible public transport system. The Rea Vaya system is aimed at providing better public transport, reducing congestion, on public roads, improving the roads and creating jobs. The findings have shown that the Rea Vaya has not been successful in meeting all its aims. The Rea Vaya has not managed to provide an accessible transport system thus far. Traffic in the inner city has not been reduced as a modal shift has not yet occurred. Since the inception of the Rea Vaya system there has been resistance from the Taxi Industry. Despite negotiations and attempts made by the Municipality of the City of Johannesburg to include the Taxi Industry in the Rea Vaya system, by making them shareholders of the system, the findings presented affirms that there is still resentment and resistance from the Taxi Industry towards the Rea Vaya system. The loss of revenue since the introduction of the Rea Vaya has caused a challenge for Taxi owners. Not only is it alleged that the Rea Vaya has affected the Taxi Industry, but the Rea Vaya infrastructure has caused a number of problems for private car users in the City. Private car users are inconvenienced by the designated bus lanes and lack of road signage in the city. These conclusions affirm that the Rea Vaya is not beneficial to all stakeholders in the City of Johannesburg. The experiences and opinions of users and non-users suggest that the system has a number of deficiencies. However some users of the system have benefited socially and economically. For some of the users the Rea Vaya has created a few opportunities; however the poor customer service from bus drivers and station staff was seen as a setback. Transit Orientated development in Johannesburg has not yet taken off. The government’s attempts to create mixed land use through the implementation of corridors of freedom are in its infant stages. Businesses across the Rea Vaya station found the Rea Vaya to have both positive and negative effects on their businesses. Some businesses found that the development of stations have added aesthetic value, however due to the frequency of Rea Vaya buses at stations, commuters would not wait for long periods of time and this resulted in fewer customers for businesses across the Rea Vaya station. The Rea Vaya system has provided a safe and reliable transport system in Johannesburg. However, the system is in its infant stages and has a number of deficiencies as presented in the findings of this study. / Geography / M. Sc. (Geography)

This study aimed at examining the social and economic effects of the Rea Vaya Bus Rapid Transit system (BRT) on various stakeholders in Johannesburg. The objective of the study was to investigate the effect the Rea Vaya has had on users and non-users of the Rea Vaya system. The findings of this study suggest that the Rea Vaya is beneficial in that it provides an option in modes of transport for commuters, particularly for people who were historically disadvantaged and were not permitted to reside in the city during the apartheid era. BRT systems are designed to provide a safe, reliable and accessible public transport system. The Rea Vaya system is aimed at providing better public transport, reducing congestion, on public roads, improving the roads and creating jobs. The findings have shown that the Rea Vaya has not been successful in meeting all its aims. The Rea Vaya has not managed to provide an accessible transport system thus far. Traffic in the inner city has not been reduced as a modal shift has not yet occurred. Since the inception of the Rea Vaya system there has been resistance from the Taxi Industry. Despite negotiations and attempts made by the Municipality of the City of Johannesburg to include the Taxi Industry in the Rea Vaya system, by making them shareholders of the system, the findings presented affirms that there is still resentment and resistance from the Taxi Industry towards the Rea Vaya system. The loss of revenue since the introduction of the Rea Vaya has caused a challenge for Taxi owners. Not only is it alleged that the Rea Vaya has affected the Taxi Industry, but the Rea Vaya infrastructure has caused a number of problems for private car users in the City. Private car users are inconvenienced by the designated bus lanes and lack of road signage in the city. These conclusions affirm that the Rea Vaya is not beneficial to all stakeholders in the City of Johannesburg. The experiences and opinions of users and non-users suggest that the system has a number of deficiencies. However some users of the system have benefited socially and economically. For some of the users the Rea Vaya has created a few opportunities; however the poor customer service from bus drivers and station staff was seen as a setback. Transit Orientated development in Johannesburg has not yet taken off. The government’s attempts to create mixed land use through the implementation of corridors of freedom are in its infant stages. Businesses across the Rea Vaya station found the Rea Vaya to have both positive and negative effects on their businesses. Some businesses found that the development of stations have added aesthetic value, however due to the frequency of Rea Vaya buses at stations, commuters would not wait for long periods of time and this resulted in fewer customers for businesses across the Rea Vaya station. The Rea Vaya system has provided a safe and reliable transport system in Johannesburg. However, the system is in its infant stages and has a number of deficiencies as presented in the findings of this study. / Geography / M. Sc. (Geography)