By Selloane Ntshonyane
- Diesel is 28.8% more expensive than a year ago, according to Stats SA’s July 2026 figures.
- Taxi marshal Sechaba Matebesi’s daily income has dropped from R500 to R200 since he started six years ago.
Sechaba Matebesi, 30, has watched his daily income shrink from R500 to R200 over six years working as a taxi marshal in Kliptown.
He has no basic salary. He earns R5 each time he calls a taxi forward for waiting passengers, so his income depends entirely on how much money drivers are making.
“I’ve stopped buying and wearing branded clothes because they have become too expensive for me,” he said.
Diesel is at the centre of the squeeze. Diesel prices are 28.8% higher than a year ago, according to Statistics South Africa’s July 2026 figures.
Matlotlo Sephaphathi, 47, has been driving taxis in Soweto since 2010. He pays a R700 daily target to the taxi owner and spends around R400 a day on diesel.
“The increase in diesel has affected me because I used to pour just R300 everyday and now I have to use the extra money I make to pay for the diesel,” Sephaphathi said.
On a good day, he makes around R1,450, but his income is unpredictable. On slow days, he can wait up to five hours for passengers and make as little as R500, well short of his target.
“If I don’t meet the target for a specific day, the owner takes it from my R1,200 weekly pay,” he said.
Rising costs have changed what Sephaphathi can afford at home.
“I can’t buy groceries like before. I need to cut on buying things like cereals and snacks. I’ve also cut on buying kids’ clothes,” he said.
Beyond diesel and the daily target, he also has to cover brake pads, tyres, servicing and engine oil to keep the taxi running.
“I wish passengers can be patient because we work on a target. Others complain when we wait longer for passengers,” he said.
For Matebesi, the effects of a bad day on the road reach him too, since his income rises and falls with how much the drivers he works with are earning.
Pictured above: [image to confirm]
Image source: Selloane Ntshonyane
