Golden Arrow commuters to brace for bus fare increase

Commuters have to brace themselves to dig a little bit deeper in their pockets, as the Golden Arrow Bus Services (Gabs) will increase fares later this month.

The company will be implementing an average spike of 2.7% on September 18.

Gabs general manager, Derick Meyer, announced the adjustment on Thursday, saying the operating contract with the provincial government made provision for adjustments to fares to offset operational cost increases.

“We remain ever cognisant of the impact of fare increases on our passengers and therefore only implement increases when all cost-saving options have been exhausted and absorbing operational cost increases is no longer possible.”

Meyer attributed the hike to an increase in operational input costs, such as fuel.

“Contractual rates paid by the government have also decreased in real terms.

“The pricing of pensioner’s products will not increase.

“To make the most of our product offerings and access the greatest savings, we would advise that passengers purchase a Gabs Gold Card and load weekly or monthly products instead of paying cash.

“Weekly and monthly products are sold at a discount of up to 45%.

“Gabs Gold Cards, a once-off purchase, are still priced at R35,” said Meyer.

The South African National Taxi Council's (Santaco) Ryno Saaiers said fare increase were applied once or twice in a year.

“Normally regions decide if there is a need to increase following assessments and a number of factors.

“However, there will not be a (taxi) fare increase soon due to the petrol hike as there might be changes next month,” he said.

Santaco said it noted that the taxi industry was the largest consumer of fuel and diesel, as well as its substantial contribution to the national fuel levy.

“We propose the introduction of a Rebate System. This measure will not only acknowledge the industry's contribution to the national GDP but also alleviate some of its financial burdens.”

Cape Times