Johannesburg highways disrupted by metered taxi protest, Uber cars torched

johannesburg metered taxi strike r24

Traffic along Gauteng’s R24 route was brought to a standstill this morning, after metered taxi drivers parked their cars on the road in protest.

The R24 and R21 are two of Johannesburg and the East Rand’s most important routes, linking key Johannesburg suburbs with OR Tambo International Airport.

This morning from as early as 6am however, the roads were barely accessible.

#TaxiProtest and #HighwayProtest began trending on Twitter across Gauteng Friday morning, as users tweeted pictures of the blockage, and information channels reported on the incident.

According to police, two Uber cars were also set alight. This also comes after a spike in violence against Uber passengers in Gauteng.

More than 30 metered taxi drivers were arrested for their involvement in the blockade.

While the R24 and R21 are now open, traffic backlogs remain.

There have also been fresh reports of a taxi protest in Mpumalanga.

It’s not clear why metered taxi drivers engaged in the protest action.

Andy Walker, former editor
More

News

Sign up to our newsletter to get the latest in digital insights. sign up

Welcome to Memeburn

Sign up to our newsletter to get the latest in digital insights.