Rival Soweto taxi associations which have been fighting over routes may see their ranks closed after the provincial government moved to stop operations following a spate of violence between them.

Gauteng roads and transport MEC Ismail Vadi yesterday published a notice in the provincial gazette in which he gave the Nancefiled Dube West Taxi Association (Nanduwe) and Witwatersrand Taxi Association (Wata) until tomorrow to submit representations motivating why their ranks should not be closed.

The two associations should also indicate why they should not be prohibited from operating for the next three months.

This comes as the two associations have been implicated in acts of violence since the beginning of the year which has seen three taxi operators affiliated to Wata murdered several taxis were attacked.

Vadi has indicated that he intended to close taxi services along the affected routes in Soweto from March 9 until June 18. This would leave thousands of commuters stranded.

Amos Majozi, Wata chairman, told Sowetan that they met with Nanduwe's leadership yesterday in a bid to iron out their differences.

"The MEC has given us two days to make our case to him on why he should not close our ranks and routes," Majozi said.

He claimed that the conflict between the two associations came after Nanduwe members chased away their vehicles from a disputed taxi rank.

"They did this despite there being a court order instructing both our associations to work together until the Gauteng Provincial Regulatory Entity (GPRE) is finalised. The GPRE monitors provincial public transport and decides on applications relating to operating licences," Majozi said.

Vadi said he received reports of the murders of three Wata senior officials in January followed by reports of violence and intimidation in February.

On Tuesday, six passengers were left injured after their taxi was shot at and ten vehicles were left damaged.

"The Gauteng provincial government will not allow a situation where alleged hitmen are hired to attack taxi leaders, commuters and drivers with impunity, and members of rival associations allegedly attack one another and damage vehicles," Vadi said.

Vadi had previously closed the rank and the routes for one month in July 2017 which were only re-opened after Wata and Nanduwe had signed an agreement to abide by their operating licenses and to desist from acts of violence.

Nanduwe had not responded to request for comment by the time of going to print.