Telkom, in partnership with the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco), is set to launch free Wi-Fi connections at taxi ranks and in mini bus taxis around the country.
This is according to Santaco CEO, Nkululeko Buthelezi, who told Talk Radio 702 that the project is part of an improvement in the group’s taxi service.
It is believed that the service will be for a limited period, and will launch as soon as Thursday (12 June).
Buthelezi said that the taxi organisation would allow various partners and stakeholders to advertise using this particular platform, in order to pay for the service.
“I can assure you it won’t cost the commuter an extra cent,” he said.
“I believe it will contribute to the growth of the country in general,” Buthelezi said, noting that commuters would be able to access Wi-Fi at taxi ranks in order to look for jobs and socialise with their friends online.
The taxi boss said that phase one of the roll-out would see 1,500 taxis and the top 10 major taxi ranks in Gauteng getting connected, which would then move to the other provinces.
He pointed out that the taxi fleet is a “strong 250,000” meaning that the process could take some time to complete. “We may not be everywhere,” he said.
He said that Santaco, in conjunction with Telkom, aimed to roll-out between 4,000-5,000 Wi-Fi equipped taxis each month.
Buthelezi said that taxis were responsible for 15 million commuters on a daily basis. “We want to attract even private vehicle users to come back to using taxis,” Buthelezi said.
