The City of Cape Town regrets the challenges currently being experienced by our MyCiTi commuters, particularly on the N2 Express routes from Khayelitsha and Mitchells Plain to the Civic Centre. A primary cause of disruption is persistent vandalism. In the last six months alone, 26 buses on this route have been damaged by stone-throwing, wire tampering, and damaging of doors. A staggering 56% of our bus fleet pulled out of circulation for repairs have been maliciously vandalised through acts of anti-social behaviour by members of the very communities who rely on the service, heavily impacting fellow commuters.

As a result, the available fleet is at times significantly reduced due to MyCiTi buses being attacked and abused. The primary victims of these attacks are the commuters who rely on the MyCiTi service for safe and reliable public transport.

‘We have noticed a disturbing trend where vandalism, particularly stone throwing, escalates during the school holidays.

‘One particularly alarming incident last week saw a bus carrying dozens of passengers targeted at three separate locations, the Bontebok stop, Spine stop at the AZ Berman school, and Paulsberg stop, resulting in a smashed door and windows, and the terrorising of those on board. These are not minor acts of vandalism; they are serious criminal acts that put lives at risk,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Mobility, Councillor Rob Quintas.

The City truly empathises with commuters and appreciates their frustration regarding bus cancellations and the current inadequate supply of buses. It, however, needs to be emphasised that the vandalism along with the need to routinely maintain and refurbish the fleets, results in buses being out of circulation. If the buses were being taken offline for general maintenance or necessary repairs and refurbishments only, there would be far less of an impact on the level of service commuters are experiencing.

‘We are pleading with communities to help us look after the buses, stations and shelters by reporting illegal activities. It has come to our attention that there have been confirmed cases of tampering on the buses. Help us safeguard your public transport service! Fifty-six percent of the current scheduling issues could be solved if the vandalism stops. The quality of service will then also improve,’ said Quintas.

Each time a bus has been vandalised in any way, be it damaged windows from stone throwing or damages inside the bus such as wire tampering; panels being removed and seats being cut, the bus is removed from the operating fleet for the required repairs. These damaged buses are then out of circulation for a long period unnecessarily which has a huge impact on our commuters as buses are packed to capacity with great delays during peak periods.

The City is continually undertaking complete and partial refurbishment of our bus fleet. The demand on some routes is huge and the mileage on the buses per day is very high. The buses serving Khayelitsha and Mitchells Plain travel approximately 800 km every day and service commuters at a subsidised rate. These buses therefore need to be in a constant maintenance cycle.

The entire fleet will undergo an aggressive refurbishment programme, which will need to be done in phases. It is important to remember that these are bespoke vehicles and repairs take time. Major refurbishment programmes, although uncomfortable, are essential and cannot be delayed.

‘Our priority is to provide safety and dignified service to our commuters, however it has to be stressed that the growing vandalism problem greatly stifles our efforts in this regard,’ said Quintas.