Nelson Mandela Bay Police Stop Taxi With 40 Kids Inside

Three days before a devastating crash killed 12 students in Gauteng, South Africa, metro police in Nelson Mandela Bay stopped a disaster waiting to happen.

Officers arrested a 27-year-old taxi driver attempting to transport 40 passengers in a 16-seat minibus. Most of the passengers were schoolchildren from the city's Northern Areas.

The driver tried to evade the checkpoint with his expired permit and nearly hit an officer in the process. He was arrested and charged with reckless driving, failing to follow lawful instructions, and overloading.

Just three days later, the nation's worst fears became reality. A minibus taxi carrying students collided with a truck near Vanderbijlpark, killing 12 learners and prompting Transport Minister Barbara Creecy to order immediate nationwide action.

Creecy and Deputy Minister Mkhuleko Hlengwa directed traffic enforcement agencies across the country to intensify their focus on school transport safety. They announced a zero tolerance policy for overloading, speeding, and unroadworthy vehicles.

The government is now making unannounced visits to inspect school transport vehicles nationwide. Unroadworthy vehicles will be impounded immediately, and reckless drivers will face arrest.

The Ripple Effect

The Nelson Mandela Bay arrest showed that enforcement works. One vigilant checkpoint potentially saved dozens of young lives and sparked a conversation that reached the highest levels of government.

The Department of Transport is finalizing a new National Learner Transport Policy to tackle safety issues and improve access to reliable school transportation. Communities are being encouraged to report operators who overload vehicles or ignore safety rules.

Dr. Siyabulela Fobosi, a leading researcher in informal transport services, called the situation "dangerous lawlessness" that demands immediate solutions. The South African Human Rights Commission found that most school transport services suffer from overloading, unroadworthy vehicles, and frequent breakdowns.

The Nelson Mandela Bay officers who stopped that overloaded taxi didn't just enforce the law—they showed that prevention is possible when authorities act decisively to protect the most vulnerable travelers on the road.