Taxi bosses hail Joburg digital whizz's 'brilliant' app

It’s time to digitalise the taxi industry, says Skhona Khumalo, who launched the Khwela app at the Bree Street taxi rank in Johannesburg’s CBD on Monday.

The app aims to give passengers a voice about their problems with taxis or drivers, as well as information about the closest rank to them, the destinations from each rank and costs of each trip.

The app has a forum where taxi users can use 100 characters to address emergencies and concerns about drivers, and even ask for a taxi to be dispatched to a certain place if many people are struggling to hail one.

The idea is to also expand the app nationally.

Khumalo, 28, a digital innovator from Johannesburg, says his market is 18- to 28-year-olds who have fluctuating demands and might need new route information when visiting a new space.

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