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A budgeted R6 million for the completion of the Thohoyandou taxi rank facility, in Limpopo has been returned to Treasury. This is a very disappointing turn of events given the economic benefit this development can provide to the community.

The intermodal taxi building structure project, which includes the taxi rank as well as a retail and office block, commenced construction in June 2011. The facility has had a plethora of issues and obstacles that have seen the project delayed and incur additional costs in remedial construction work.

The initial cost of the Thohoyandou Taxi rank project was over R256 million and the department incurred a further R25.2 million in remedial construction works carried out on the project.

The biggest issue the taxi rank construction project faced was that the building, that reached practical completion in 2013, had shown cracks and had serious structural issues. A structural assessment by an engineer revealed numerous concerns and that there was a need for remedial construction work to address the defects.

The other major issue that contributed to the delay of the opening of the taxi rank facility was that the Limpopo Department of Transport and Community Safety had failed to acquire approved building plans and architect drawings required for an occupation certificate. There were also issues in finding a suitable contractor for the remedial construction work, a lack of capacity of the contractor appointed to do the remedial construction as well as the contractor’s non-compliance to health and safety regulations.

The funds are said to have been  allocated to reprioritise resources to fund budget pressures within the department, which is a clear indication of financial mismanagement. The DA Believes that the 11-year-old facility should be a priority as  it was meant to be a sign of hope in the area of infrastructure development that  can encourage economic growth, investment  as well as create opportunities and improve access to public transport.

The inability by the department to spend the R6 000 000 to finally complete the project is now just a reminder of an incapable and wasteful government.

The DA calls on MEC Florence Radzilani to provide reason for this setback and plan to mitigate this loss to ensure that the Thohoyandou Taxi Rank can finally benefit the residents.

Issued by Katlego Suzan Phala MPL - DA Provincial Spokesperson on Transport and Community Safety