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Taxi crackdown: Operators get second chance as Govt unveils new SOPs
The operators asked for up to 90 days to fix the affected vehicles and proposed that the ongoing period for removing dangerous or mechanically defective taxis be matched with a period for repairing them.
Vehicles found on the road with the same defects after the agreed period could be impounded again. (File photo)
By: Moses Kigongo, Journalist @New Vision
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Kampala taxi operators have received new Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) as crackdown on unsafe vehicles continues.
Earlier today (Thursday, August 26), Kabuye Kyofatogabye, the State Minister for Kampala Capital City Authority and Metropolitan Affairs, convened a meeting to sensitise commuter taxi operators on the SOPs governing the taxi industry in the city.
The meeting at the Office of the President on Parliament Avenue in Kampala attracted commuter taxi operators, leaders and officials involved in the ongoing crackdown on unsafe taxis in the Kampala Metropolitan area.
Some operators whose vehicles have been impounded were also invited to understand the requirements and make commitments on repairing the defects.
Kyofatogabye told the meeting that the crackdown is being implemented in phases following a directive issued by Government recently.
The first phase is focusing on taxis with visible defects that can be identified without taking the vehicles through a full inspection. Defects include broken windows, faulty indicators and damaged seats.
Several officials, including the director of Traffic and Road Safety, Lawrence Nuweabine, said the engagement exercise is intended to give affected taxi operators a second chance to repair and improve their vehicles.
Kyofatogabye told the meeting that the crackdown is being implemented in phases following a directive issued by Government recently.
The first phase is focusing on taxis with visible defects that can be identified without taking the vehicles through a full inspection. Defects include broken windows, faulty indicators and damaged seats.
Several officials, including the director of Traffic and Road Safety, Lawrence Nuweabine, said the engagement exercise is intended to give affected taxi operators a second chance to repair and improve their vehicles.
He stressed that taxi owners and drivers whose vehicles are released will be required to commit themselves to specific periods within which the visible defects will be repaired. Vehicles found on the road with the same defects after the agreed period could be impounded again, with officials warning that habitual offenders risk having their vehicles taken off the road.
During the meeting, the Uganda Taxi Operators Federation (UTOF) chairman, Rashid Sekindi, presented a brief report on the operation.
He said operators had responded to earlier advice by taking vehicles to garages, while also requesting the government to consider supporting them financially to repair their taxis.
The operators asked for up to 90 days to fix the affected vehicles and proposed that the ongoing period for removing dangerous or mechanically defective taxis be matched with a period for repairing them.
At the time of publishing this report, the traffic officers' lecture on SOPs for the taxi industry was still underway!
During the meeting, the Uganda Taxi Operators Federation (UTOF) chairman, Rashid Sekindi, presented a brief report on the operation.
He said operators had responded to earlier advice by taking vehicles to garages, while also requesting the government to consider supporting them financially to repair their taxis.
The operators asked for up to 90 days to fix the affected vehicles and proposed that the ongoing period for removing dangerous or mechanically defective taxis be matched with a period for repairing them.
At the time of publishing this report, the traffic officers' lecture on SOPs for the taxi industry was still underway!