Residents of Sibasa and the surrounding areas hailed the opening of the new R44 million rand bus and taxi rank as a step in the right direction as it will improve the lives of residents in the municipality.

The work on the bus and taxi facility started in 2011 and was envisaged to be completed in eighteen months. It was, however, finally opened almost five years after it was started due to poor workmanship by the contractor who had been appointed to do the job.

The contractor was given the boot and a new one appointed to complete the job.

During the official opening of the project last Wednesday morning, the mood was one of joy and happiness. The rank was officially opened by the mayor of Thulamela, Cllr Grace Mahosi.

The facility includes restrooms, offices for the taxi and bus association, stalls for hawkers, and parking bays for buses and taxis. The facility also created employment for 140 people, including sub-contractors, during the construction phase.

Mahosi said the municipality was determined to change the lives of the residents in the area. She said the development was in line with the municipality's vision of its becoming a city by 2030. “This is a true sign that we are truly reaching our objective that, in 15 years to come, our town will be a city centre. We are determined to deliver quality infrastructure and that is the reason why we had to terminate the services of the contractor who did shoddy work for us and delayed the completion of this project."

She urged the residents to take care of the facility.

Hawkers who were present during the opening were over the moon. Ms Mashudu Mudau (54), who has been hawking in the town for years, said the new rank came as a relief to them and that it had restored their dignity. “We have been operating under unbecoming conditions, which were not conducive to good business."

On behalf of the Vhembe Bus Association, Mr Cristopher Nevhutalu said the new rank came as a big relief to them. “We have been operating informally, with traffic fines being the order of the day as we did not have a place to park our vehicles. Now all that is history and we are very excited,” he said.

Representing the taxi operators, Balanganani Solomon Shandukani said the facility came as an answer to their problems. “Our operations will now be formal, with no taxis having to stop everywhere for passengers. We have more than 5000 members who will now utilise this facility and we feel it is long overdue. We will encourage the community to take care of the facility,” he said.