On Wednesday Tonota residents could be seen walking into the village in large numbers as there were no local taxis to ferry them to their final destinations within the village. The taxi operators have cited lack of business on their part because Francistown buses are dropping off passengers within the village instead of at the bus rank, where they would then hop into a taxi to get home.
Mmegi visited the new Tonota Bus rank where taxi operators had parked their cars until a resolution to their grievances could be passed. One of the taxi operators, Morena Majoo said they have been struggling with bus operators since the rank was established. "We have struggled from the word go since the rank started operating on April 1," said Majoo. He said it was agreed that as a trial the buses would drop off people at the rank where taxis would take them for the final leg of their journey, but the whole thing had failed as the buses failed to cooperate. He said the buses still operate as they did before the establishment of the bus rank. Majoo further alleged that when buses drive through the village they also pick up customers on the way using local rates. "They pick up some passengers on the way that are waiting for taxis," he said. According to the operators, Tonota Rank currently has 23 combis and 18 taxis.
