By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Bus commuters may be left stranded on Thursday due to Public Utility Transport Corporation (Putco) suspending its bus service due to non-payment by government.
The suspension is effective from Thursday until further notice.
The interruption will affect thousands of commuters in Gauteng, Limpopo and Mpumalanga.
Spokesperson Lindokuhle Xulu says the disruption is due to unpaid subsidy claims by the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport.
“Putco is working closely with the government to ensure that payments are processed as soon as possible to avoid a prolonged service disruption as well as inconvenience to our valued passengers.
“Should the situation improve, stakeholders will be informed timeously. The underfunding of the bus public transport industry, as well as the excessive fuel increases in the past few months, have exacerbated the situation,” says Xulu.
“In addition, the relief that the bus industry requested has not been granted, leaving bus operators in a very difficult situation.”
The Gauteng Roads and Transport Department said payments to Putco for the portion of March had been captured and would reflect on the bus operators’ bank account by Monday.
The department said delays in processing subsidised bus operators’ payments for March 2023 were due to transactions from different bank accounts which take about three days.
“Delays in processing subsidised bus operators’ payments for the month of March 2023 are a result of a widely-known procedure and trend. The Public Transport Operating Grant (PTOG) is only being transferred to the province by the National Department of Transport in the first week of May each financial year.
The department now manages 34 bus subsidy contracts awarded to 13 bus operators, Putco among them,” the department said.
The department said it was working with the bus company to find a solution to ensure minimal, if any, service disruption and inconvenience to the passengers.