BIG changes to public transport operating licences until April 2027

Three requirements for public transport operating licences are temporarily suspended by the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport (GDRT). As such, this gives operators a six-month grace period, until 30 April 2027, to get their affairs in order …

This temporary amendment to the Gauteng Public Transport Regulatory Information System (GPTRIS) follows an airing of concerns by operators. These include scholar transport, metered taxis and e-hailing industry. The Gauteng National Taxi Alliance (GNTA) and South African National Taxi Council (Santaco) also asked for a period consultation.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT OPERATING LICENCES

As such, the temporarily scrapped requirements until the end of April 2027 are:

• Police clearance certificates

  : Applicants for public transport operating licences won’t have to submit one.

• Labour law compliance

  : You don’t need to submit a formal undertaking that you’ll comply with the Labour Relations Act.

• Professional driving permits (PrDPs):

  Business/operating licence owners don’t need one.

Public transport operating licences will be facilitated by the admin board (TOLAB) without the above requirements.

WHAT’S NOT SUSPENDED

Gauteng government insists operators use this time to get compliant with the various requirements. Image: File

However, the Gauteng government stressed that the suspension is strictly limited to these requirements. “It does not constitute a general suspension of any other public transport operating licences,” a spokesman confirmed. As such, the department says it will use the six months to standardise a single set of application requirements for operating licences across all public transport modes. And, after 30 April 2027, the temporary suspensions will lapse. The department says it will: “Strictly monitor and enforce compliance across all modes of public transport.”

WHAT OPERATORS CAN DO ABOUT IT

Gauteng government recommends operators should use this grace period to:

• Gather all police clearance certificates, labour compliance documents and PrDPs where needed.
• Apply/renew through your TOLAB now and keep all records for reference.
• Watch for further GDRT notices.

For the country’s richest and busiest province, **six months **gives operators breathing room and the department time to settle on workable rules. What it doesn’t do is remove the requirements entirely, which Santaco and GNTA may wish were the case …

But what do you think of these temporary changes to public transport operating licences in Gauteng? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below …