Minister Welcomes Withdrawal of Operating Licenses

The Provincial Operating Licensing Board (POLB) today held a hearing for a decision on the fate of Mr. Jacob Humphreys' operating licenses.

The POLB decided to withdraw the two (2) operating licenses under Mr. Humphreys' name in terms of Section 79(2) b of the National Land Transport Act 2009.

The POLB found Mr. Humphreys' guilty of violating the conditions of his operating license which only allowed him to "transport learners of Labiance Technical School, Kasselsvlei Comprehensive and Bellville South High School from their places of residence to the schools and return them to the conditions specified by the board".

The POLB established that Mr. Humphreys' has consistently breached the conditions of his operating license by transporting schoolchildren to other schools where he didn't have the authority to do so. The POLB also withdrew the second operating license because they are convinced that Mr. Humphreys is not 'a fit and proper' person to own one.

Minister Robin Carlisle welcomed the decision to withdraw the operating licenses of Mr. Jacob Humphreys. "I commend the POLB's for this watershed decision. Any public transport operator who blatantly disregard the conditions of their operating licenses and compromises the safety of his passengers and other roads users does not deserve to be on our roads".

"My department will not hesitate to either withdraw operating licenses or reject applications for license renewals to keep our roads safe. We are determined to confront the utter contempt for the laws of the roads and human life perpetuated by reckless operators like Mr. Humphreys. I hope that this decision will be a lesson to other operators to take their responsibility towards roads safety more seriously".

Minister Carlisle appealed to parents to verify the credentials of operators and drivers who transport their children to school. "I urge all parents to do everything they can to verify the credibility of whoever transports their children to school and also monitor them where they can to ensure that their children's lives are not at risk".