Registered bus operators at Rehoboth have made a desperate plea for authorities to address the mushrooming of illegal taxi drivers, as discontent is brewing.

They have threatened to block the B1 road if the situation is not addressed.
 
nbc News reporter Gordon Joseph met with some disgruntled bus drivers at Rehoboth over the weekend.

The registered bus drivers say their pleas continue to fall on deaf ears, and they allege that the Windhoek-Rehoboth route is dominated by illegal buses and 7-seaters.

The affected public transport operators say bus pick-up points have become a danger zone for both legal operators and customers, with so-called loading managers demanding payment after bringing customers and threatening drivers with weapons.

They described the situation as a ticking time bomb.

"The situation at pick-up points is becoming untenable; it's starting to become criminal. This was not the situation when there were only legal operators and there weren't seven-seaters. There was only one loading master. Now that there are seven-seaters, there are many load masters, some of whom don't even bathe. They load customers, demand 20 or 10 dollars, and threaten to stab bus drivers."