The Criminilisation of Informal Trolley Pushers in Downtown JHB

posted by Ismail Farouk at Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Trolley pushing activity in downtown Joburg provides a service for commuters who want to transport heavy luggage between The Jack Mincer Taxi Rank and The Park City Taxi Rank. Whilst the trolley pushers provide an important service, the activity has always occurred in contravention of the law as the trolleys (shopping carts) used are generally stolen from supermarket chain stores. The trolley pushers are not responsible for the theft of the trolleys. Gangs made up of Zimbabwean youth are responsible for the supply trolleys - Stolen trolleys are sold for R50 on the street.

Most trolley pushers charge a fee of R20 for a single load between the taxi ranks, however trolley pushers are rarely paid more than R5. Customers are aware of the illegal nature of the activity and bargain for the cheapest possible rate for the service.

Here is a little trolley cam video demonstrating the activity:

A major problem associated with trolley pushing activity has been victimization by the police. Every time a raid occurs, trolley pushers are fined R300 and trolleys are confiscated. Lately, raids have been occurring with increasing frequency and trolley pushers are being detained in prison for a seemingly harmless economic activity. As a result, trolley pushers try to avoid police hot spots and choose to walk through the De Villiers Street market, a highly congested linear market which connects the taxi ranks in Joubert Park.

Compounding the problems faced by trolley pushers has been the struggle for citizenship as most trolley pushers in the study area are Mozambican, however, there is an increase of Zimbabwean Trolley Pushers. Most trolley pushers are growing tired of being arrested and deported for a lack of citizenship.

Surprisingly, a large number of trolley pushers interviewed all claim to have been operating in the area since 2001. This fact dispels the perceptions related to the transient nature of life in Joubert Park.

An official response to the activity has been the formation of an organisation called "Crime Stop Porters" who utilize flat bed trolleys as opposed to the shopping cart trolleys. Porters are required to pay R20 per day for rental of the flat bed trolleys. Many pushers involved in the initiative complain that the rental fee is too high, and feel exploited by the initiative. Trolley pushers operating using illegal trolleys also complain about the small capacity of the flat bed trolleys.


Action: In April 2008 a trolley pusher protest was orchestrated in collaboration with the the trolley pushers of Joubert Park. The objective behind the action was to mobilize support for the formalisation of a representative trolley association. The protest took place at the vehicular entrance of the Johannesburg Art Gallery (JAG), a location synonymous with police activity. Since the protest, weekly meetings with the trolley pushers have been organised in aid of formalising the activity in the city. This work is being undertaken independently and without the support of the Urban Concerns project or The Johannesburg Art Gallery.

Labels: activism, Citizenship, Community, criminilisation, Informal, informal trade, police, SAPS, social capital, social justice, spatial justice, urban concerns, urban research, xenophobia