Golden Arrow calls for support from govt and police to combat bus attacks
Golden Arrow on Tuesday called for more support from government and police to combat bus robberies and arson.
The company said on average, more than 200 buses are attacked in some way every month and there are six to eight robberies on busses on a weekly basis.
This year, 13 vehicles were lost due to protests at a cost of R29 million.
Golden Arrow CEO Francois Meyer said the attacks ranged from stones and bricks being thrown at drivers and buses to armed robberies.
“In these armed robberies, they don’t just steal the money from the drivers. They rob passengers of their wallets and cell phones. We have shots fired at buses at regular intervals. Last year, our depots were petrol bombed nine times.”
He said they were implementing various measures to address the attacks – including cameras on buses and a reward system – but still needed dedicated support from the police.
“We need more effort in terms of intelligence. We need arrests to be made and convictions. We need the whistleblowing information that we are supplying to the police to be investigated.”
Last year, municipal law-enforcement officers were assigned to buses but the unit was disbanded due to the operational requirements of the COVID-19 lockdown, and the city said a bigger investment was needed because a handful of officers could not cover the entire fleet.
-EWN
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