The bus service operator Linking Africa has complained of business loss following xenophobic attacks on foreigners in South Africa, reported The Post newspaper on Thursday.
In an interview, Linking Africa bus services operations manager Sinclair Bushe said since the violence broke out, the company had seen a reduction in the number of people traveling to South Africa.
He said that under normal conditions, the bus traveled with 40 passengers but that the number had reduced to 15 at the most.
"This bus is a 40-seater and since the violence broke out we have had such a big reduction and we have lost a lot of business," he said.
Bushe said most of the travelers lately were car dealers who only went to Beit Bridge and sometimes the bus got to Johannesburg with only five people on board.
He said the company had since cut the number of buses going to South Africa from two to one, saying it would only revert to the old system when the situation normalizes.
"We have lost a lot of money so we only hope the situation normalizes soon or we'll lose a lot of money," said Bushe.
South African Airways country manager Vincent Mupwaya said, however, the airline had not been affected in any way.
Mupwaya said it was difficult to tell whether the violence in South Africa had led to a reduction in the number of people flying there.
"We have not recorded any reduction but we've actually seen an increase in the number of travelers since we are a network that passes through Johannesburg," he said. "It's difficult to analyze at the moment whether we are affected because a number of our travelers booked in advance."
He said it was not every traveler that was at risk, saying most of the airline customers were business people or holiday makers.
Source:Xinhua
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