This weekend marks one of the worst in the 10-year history of the MyCiTi service with violent attacks on assets and infrastructure in the Milnerton and Dunoon areas.

The violent attacks on the MyCiTi service will have a devastating impact on commuters from the Dunoon and Milnerton areas in particular, in coming weeks.

The MyCiTi service has been providing affordable public transport to thousands of commuters every day, over the past ten years. Those who attacked our buses and infrastructure this weekend are well aware of this, and are hell-bent on destabilising and destroying this much needed service.

I am at a loss for words.

We are calling on the residents of Dunoon and Montague Gardens and eyewitnesses to please contact their nearest police stations with information, or to contact the City’s Transport Information Centre so that those responsible can be arrested and prosecuted. This is nothing less but sabotage of the worst possible kind, and in a time of crisis when COVID-19 is challenging our resolve like never before.=

The details of the attacks are as follows:

• Saturday morning, 20 June 2020, at approximately 06:45 protesters stoned a bus that was destined for the V&A Waterfront in Potsdam Road, near Dunoon. The attackers instructed passengers to get out, and then set alight an 18m bus
• Saturday evening, 20 June 2020, at approximately 22:00 the City was informed that a MyCiTi bus was set alight at the Omuramba MyCiTi station in Racecourse Road, Montague Gardens. The 12m bus burnt out completely and the station was extensively damaged, in particular platform 1 where the bus was set alight
• The cost to replace the buses and to repair the station could be at least R8 million

Thankfully nobody was injured during the two incidents.

The motive for these criminal acts is unknown.

The area is volatile at the moment, and the City can only undertake a full assessment of the damage once it is safe to do so. In the meantime, the Omuramba station will remain closed. Also, the T03, T04 and 261 routes will be deviated until further notice.

Passengers wanting to catch a bus or disembark at Omuramba station are advised to use alternative stops and stations:

• For the 261 route, please use the Gousblom stop on Koeberg Road.
• For the T03 route, please use the Sanddrift or Century City stations.
• For the T04 route, please use the Turf Club, Sanddrift or Century City stations.

Commuters can call the Transport Information Centre on 0800 65 64 63 for further updates in planning their journeys – the call is free from any phone.