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Western Cape, taxi group launch transport service for health care workers

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The Western Cape government together with 100 minibus taxis belonging to Umanyano Travel Services on Monday launched the Red Dot service for the exclusive use of essential health care workers.

According to the provincial department of transport and public works, the service is for health care workers that may have been left stranded due to limited public transport as a result of the country’s Covid-19 lockdown.

The taxis that are part of the service can be identified by the red dots on the vehicles.

As per the national level 4 lockdown regulations, all public transport must stop operating at 7pm and can resume at 5am the following morning.

The Red Dot Lite service will provide a chartered transport service for those department of health employees who needed to commute for work between 7pm and 5am, the department said in a statement.

As of June 1, the service would also transport citizens who had tested positive for Covid-19 – or were at high risk of being exposed to the virus – to public isolation and quarantine centres across the Western Cape.

The provincial government said that not many people had the facilities to self-quarantine or isolate once they tested positive for the virus, and that the department of health had established such facilities throughout the province.

The department said it was aware of the risks associated with transporting Covid-19 patients, and had taken special precautions to avoid further infections, as per health authority guidelines.

According to the statement, the fleet will initially comprise 100 minibuses that will be placed where they can best serve the needs of Red Dot and Red Dot Lite users.

The use of masks and appropriate protective gear and less than 50% capacity, or a seven passenger restriction, would be enforced.

Source: ANA


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