The Automobile Association (AA) says high fares, long commutes and inadequate public transport are trapping low-income workers in poverty, and has called for greater investment in taxis, commuter rail, BRT and pedestrian infrastructure.
The AA issued the warning during Transport Month, calling on the government to redirect public transport funding, review fuel taxes and prioritise affordable, safe and accessible transport for low-income commuters.
It said South African households spend an average of 16% of their total expenditure on mobility, well above the government’s 10% policy ceiling.
For workers earning the minimum wage and living far from economic centres, the financial pressure is particularly severe.
Affordability tracking by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group (PMBEJD) shows that transport and electricity can consume up to 64.6% of the national minimum wage.
Of the R5,078 minimum monthly wage cited in the figures, an average worker spends R1,520 on transport alone, leaving less than R1,800 for food and other household necessities.
“South Africa has engineered a structural poverty trap on wheels,” said Bobby Ramagwede, CEO of the AA.
“When a security guard or retail worker must surrender nearly half their wages just to sit in a minibus taxi, our transport network is no longer connecting people to opportunity. It is penalising them for having a job.”
The AA said the country’s legacy of spatial segregation continued to place an additional financial burden on working-class communities, many of whom live on the outskirts of cities, far from employment opportunities.
As a result, commuters often have to take two minibus taxis in each direction to reach work. At R18 per trip, a commuter travelling four times a day would spend R72 daily, or approximately R1,580 a month, on taxi fares alone.
Despite the minibus taxi industry carrying more than 80% of public transport users, the AA said the sector received no direct operational subsidies from the state, leaving commuters exposed to rising fuel prices and fare increases.
“The human cost is felt directly at the dinner table. Workers are not choosing between public transport and luxury goods. They are choosing between taxi fares and buying protein for their children,” Ramagwede said.
The association warned that transport costs were also affecting household nutrition, with families forced to compromise on food after paying for commuting and utilities.
The PMBEJD estimates that a basic nutritional food basket for a family of four costs about R3,800 a month. However, the AA said minimum-wage earners were left with less than half that amount after commuting costs, making it increasingly difficult to provide balanced meals.
It also pointed to research indicating that more than 25% of South African boys under the age of five suffer from stunting, highlighting concerns about the consequences of poverty and inadequate nutrition.
The Competition Commission has also reported that average workers spend more than 57% of their earnings on transport and electricity, according to the information provided by the AA. The association said the financial strain was forcing households to turn to expensive unsecured debt to afford basic groceries.
Against this backdrop, the AA criticised government spending on major transport infrastructure projects, particularly the Gautrain, arguing that more resources should be directed towards transport systems used by the majority of commuters.
The association contrasted the funding allocated to the Gautrain with the deterioration of Metrorail services on corridors serving working-class communities, which it attributed to vandalism and neglect.
Between the 2019/20 and 2022/23 financial years, the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport paid more than R5.1 billion to the Bombela Concession Company through contractual patronage guarantees intended to compensate for lower-than-expected passenger volumes.
Over the same period, Gautrain passenger trips declined from 13.9 million to 7.9 million, according to the figures cited by the AA.
“The patronage guarantee is built-in taxpayer insurance for poor commercial performance.
“Billions of rands that should fund mass transit and safe walking paths are used to prop up a premium rail service for a shrinking, wealthy minority. We are subsidising luxury mobility for the few while the workforce walks through the dark to catch unsafe, unsubsidised transport,” Ramagwede said.
The AA said the transport crisis was also affecting businesses, with employees arriving exhausted after lengthy commutes and companies facing rising fleet and logistics costs.
It added that households spending an increasing share of their disposable income on transport and fuel had less money available for goods and services, placing further pressure on consumer-facing industries.
“Mobility is the backbone of the economy. If people and freight cannot move affordably, economic growth stalls. This touches everything that moves, from corporate fleets managing logistical costs to mothers skipping meals so their children can get to school,” Ramagwede said.
The AA called on the government to implement three immediate reforms to address the crisis.
These include reallocating public funding from high-speed rail guarantees towards mass-market transport systems, including taxi ranks, Bus Rapid Transit and commuter rail; commissioning an independent audit of the General Fuel Levy and Road Accident Fund levies to identify and address unnecessary cost pressures on motorists and commercial operators; and investing in well-lit pedestrian walkways and non-motorised transport corridors linking residential areas to major transport ranks.
The association said improving access to transport was essential to reducing the financial burden on low-income households and expanding access to employment.
“We must move from prestige to purpose. A credible public transport system is not judged by how quickly an executive moves between Sandton and the airport. It is judged by whether a worker can travel safely with dignity and still have enough money left to feed their family,” Ramagwede said.