The SA National Taxi Council originally said its strike in the Western Cape would end on 9 August. But on that day, the council failed to resolve its dispute with the City of Cape Town and extended its strike by 48 hours.

In a statement on Wednesday evening, the SA National Taxi Council (Santaco) in the Western Cape said its lawyers would apply for an urgent interdict to stop the city and province from impounding any more taxis until the dispute was resolved. It called on taxi operators to withhold their services for another two days.

When Santaco launched its stayaway on 3 August, it said the strike would last for seven days, ending on Wednesday, 9 August.

"With this in mind, we appeal to all our members to be patient and allow us to complete this process. The application will be lodged within 48 hours and we will therefore not operate until this process is completed," said the statement.

"We apologise for any inconvenience this might cause to our commuters and the public at large. We will keep you informed of any further developments."

Five people have been killed in incidents directly related to the strike, which has left hundreds of thousands of commuters stranded and devastated the province's economy.

Santaco's demands

A letter sent by Santaco's Western Cape chairperson, Mandla Hermanus, to the City of Cape Town MEC for mobility, Ricardo Mackenzie, on Wednesday stated that the taxi strike...