The City of Cape Town has announced major cuts to its Dial-a-Ride (DaR) service to ensure its long-term sustainability.

The City has confirmed that the DaR service will continue to transport eligible wheelchair users and people with severe walking impairments between their places of work and home.

The service was implemented in 2002 with the mandate to support those who, due to the nature of their physical impairments, are unable to access conventional public transport services for their daily commute between home and work.

Cape Town’s Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Mobility, Rob Quintas, says the service has expanded over the past two decades to include commuter trips to educational, medical, and recreational facilities and shopping centres, and the user base has grown to include users with other special needs.

But he says due to budget constraints, these additional trips will no longer be offered.

“The current budget deficit amounts to nearly R1 million a month and the operational costs will continue to increase. As such, it is impossible to sustain the DaR service over the longer term without implementing changes.”

The annual budget for the service is R28,2 million, while the annual operating costs amount to R40 million. Quintas says it is no longer sustainable as the demand exceeds available resources.

As of 8 September 2025, the following will apply:

• The DaR service will be transporting eligible wheelchair users and those with severe walking impairments
• The service will be available during peak periods, from Monday to Friday, with minimal services on Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays for those who need to go to work
• The service will transport users between their places of work and home only
• Eligible users will be able to book trips to work via the DaR app, website, or call centre, as is the case currently

The City is currently engaging users, user groups, and stakeholders to inform them of the amended eligibility criteria, requirements to qualify, and amended service offering.

“The City will guide current users as best it can in finding alternatives, and regrets that it is no longer able to provide the expanded service.”