by Meter cabs brought Long Street and Wale Street to a standstill when they began violently protesting against Uber and the fact that they were taking away their business.
“Uber must go‚” was chanted as the police arrived to defuse the situation.
Many onlookers took to social media to capture the chaos and it’s clear most are in favour of Uber due to their better prices and better-screened drivers.
Several unconfirmed arrests at #Uber protest, CT CBD, where taxi drivers blocked roads & police lobbed stun grenades pic.twitter.com/NtndWw745v
— Graeme Raubenheimer (@GraemeRauby) July 14, 2016
Several taxis were overturned and vandalised during the protests. Deidre Sara Vermaak posted a photograph of a white vehicle with its windows smashed‚ saying, “Uber car smashed up #ubermustfall”
According to the Western Cape’s ruling party the Democratic Alliance, the protests were illegal and involved nearly a hundred metered taxi drivers.
Meter taxi drivers protesting in Wale Street, Cape Town against #Uber drivers. pic.twitter.com/nb3VUASKsk
— Abrie Burger (@AbrieBurger20) July 14, 2016
In a statement sent to media, the DA condemned the attacks.
“This afternoon close to a hundred metered taxi cars, allegedly from the Western Cape Metered Taxi Council, blocked several streets in Cape Town CBD. This was an illegal protest action, where an Uber driver had to escape from attacks and had to abandon his vehicle badly damaged,” it said in the statement.
The DA’s Lennit Max, who serves as the Western Cape Spokesperson on Transport and Public Works, called for calm over the situation.
More than 15 taxi drivers will be in court tomorrow with incidences involving the protest.
#Uber Wale and Long street remains closed. Metered taxi drivers refuse to leave pic.twitter.com/USYXmEqV7j
— EWN Reporter (@ewnreporter) July 14, 2016
