Uber taxi drivers are terrified of transferring passengers to or from Gautrain’s Pretoria station, claiming they are attacked and robbed by metered-taxi drivers serving the station.
One visibly fearful driver explained how he had been robbed of cash and a cellphone. The driver said numerous colleagues had had similar experiences, including assault.
The driver was entirely relaxed about taking fares to and from the nearby stations of Hatfield and Centurion. He was emphatic that the problems at Pretoria could be laid at the feet of the management of Pretoria station, which tolerated the anarchic situation, and was possibly in league with metered-taxi drivers.
The IRR points out that low-level criminality and corruption are a scourge for ordinary South Africans, and that claims about the management of Gautrain’s Pretoria station, if proved to be true, could sully Gautrain’s reputation for a generally high level of service.