2020. Unexpected. Unprecedented. The year a virus tore through the core of our being and assailed our health systems and the wellbeing of our economies. Its effects ricocheted through every street, every alley of South Africa. FORBES AFRICA trained its lens on the new reality the year is leaving behind.



Photographs and Words by Motlabana Monnakgotla &amp; Chanel Retief 



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-the-last-mile">The Last Mile</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="591" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-Last-Mile-1024x591.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-49381" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-Last-Mile-1024x591.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-Last-Mile-300x173.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-Last-Mile-768x443.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-Last-Mile-1536x886.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-Last-Mile-2048x1182.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The-Last-Mile-600x346.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure></div>



When Kagiso Ramphela (above) started Ramphela Funerals, a funeral parlor, just before Covid-19 struck South Africa, he never anticipated what was in store. Deemed essential services during the pandemic, his business, in a bizarre twist of fate, picked up.



“I don’t want to say business is booming, because it sounds like I am saying for business to boom, people must die. But what I will say is I think things have been fair to us,” Ramphela says, scratching his head, when we meet him at his office in Soweto, Johannesburg.



In this business, he always expects the unexpected, and this could mean calls in the middle of the night, from harried relatives requesting caskets for their loved ones. Ramphela needs to also ensure his staff is protected and safe from the virus at all times, whilst providing support to grieving families.



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-coping-with-loss">Coping With Loss</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="732" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Coping-With-Loss-1024x732.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-49377" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Coping-With-Loss-1024x732.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Coping-With-Loss-300x215.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Coping-With-Loss-768x549.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Coping-With-Loss-1536x1099.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Coping-With-Loss-2048x1465.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Coping-With-Loss-600x429.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure></div>



“There’s no closure,” says Charlie Mpogeng (above) standing by his brother&#8217;s grave at Westpark Cemetery in Emmarentia, west of Johannesburg. On the morning of July 17, he lost his 37-year-old brother, Herman Motlhabane, to Covid-19. “Everyone loved and respected him,” remembers Mpogeng.



“We were dressed in PPE gear to go see his body at the funeral home. We had to come out, take off the PPE, and get sanitized. And then immediately I had to get on to a call with the undertaker. There was no time to sit down and be like, ‘oh, snap I just lost my brother’.”



At the funeral, those in attendance had to observe social distancing and the ceremony only lasted a little over an hour. This is a familiar story for most who have lost a loved one to the pandemic this year. As of mid-November, South Africa recorded over 20,000 Covid- related deaths.



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-a-brake-on-business">A Brake On Business</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="649" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/A-Brake-On-business-1024x649.png" alt="" class="wp-image-49376" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/A-Brake-On-business-1024x649.png 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/A-Brake-On-business-300x190.png 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/A-Brake-On-business-768x487.png 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/A-Brake-On-business-1536x973.png 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/A-Brake-On-business-2048x1298.png 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/A-Brake-On-business-600x380.png 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure></div>



With most of the country reverting to a new Work-From- Home reality in the wake of Covid-19, South Africa’s taxi industry took a hard knock. In June, taxi associations across Johannesburg announced that they would be increasing their fares from a minimum of R11 to R30 ($1) a trip, also lamenting the lack of adequate government relief. 



New regulations stipulate that public vehicles are only allowed to carry 70% of their maximum capacity and to mandatorily practice social distancing, mask-wearing, and hand sanitizing. 



Public taxis are a popular mode of transport for daily wage earners and office commuters, especially in South Africa’s sprawling townships. Another business that braked to a screeching stop? The neighborhood car-wash facility.



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-unemployment-woes">Unemployment Woes</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Unemployment-Woes-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-49382" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Unemployment-Woes-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Unemployment-Woes-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Unemployment-Woes-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Unemployment-Woes-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Unemployment-Woes-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Unemployment-Woes-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure></div>



According to the National Income Dynamics Study-Coronavirus Rapid Mobile Survey, approximately three million South Africans have lost their jobs due to covid-19. Disgruntled unions came together in a nationwide protest (as in this image taken in the central business district of Johannesburg) on October 7 against unemployment, wage disputes, and job losses. Some demands were related to Covid-19 corruption, the failing economy, and the fact that due to a setback in the government’s wage agreement, workers may not receive salary increases in the next financial year. 



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-off-track">Off-Track</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Off-Track-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-49378" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Off-Track-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Off-Track-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Off-Track-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Off-Track-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Off-Track-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Off-Track-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure></div>



The pandemic also derailed the rail industry, with a reported surge in cable theft at railway stations. Reuters reported that during the lockdown – implemented in various stages in South Africa since march – organized, sometimes armed, criminal gangs stole valuable copper from the railway lines. As part of his economic recovery plan, President Cyril Ramaphosa has proposed the privatization of some of South Africa’s key train routes in a bid to improve transport access to millions of South Africans.



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-butt-seriously">Butt Seriously </h2>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Butt-Seriously-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-49374" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Butt-Seriously-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Butt-Seriously-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Butt-Seriously-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Butt-Seriously-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Butt-Seriously-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Butt-Seriously-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure></div>



One of the most controversial lockdown regulations in South Africa was the banning of the sale of cigarettes. This forced many to either resort to more expensive, often ‘illegal ways’ to source their smoking stock, or quit altogether.



The Research Unit on the Economics of Excisable Products, based at the University of Cape Town, and the South African Medical Research Council&#8217;s Dr Catherine Egbe, found that nearly a million people quit smoking during the lockdown.



On the other hand, British American Tobacco South Africa (BATSA) released a media statement in July saying that research shows 11 million smokers in South Africa are still able to purchase cigarettes from illicit suppliers. “These illicit suppliers are not suddenly going to become compliant and start obeying the law and paying taxes when the ban is eventually lifted. They evaded taxes before the lockdown, they’ve made billions tax-free during the ban and they will evade taxes after the ban,” said BATSA’s Head of External Affairs Johnny Moloto in July.



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-something-to-wine-about">Something to Wine About</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Something-To-Wine-About-1024x683.png" alt="" class="wp-image-49380" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Something-To-Wine-About-1024x683.png 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Something-To-Wine-About-300x200.png 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Something-To-Wine-About-768x512.png 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Something-To-Wine-About-1536x1024.png 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Something-To-Wine-About-2048x1365.png 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Something-To-Wine-About-600x400.png 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure></div>



Another point of contention was the back and forth regarding the ban on alcohol during the lockdown. This impasse specifically had a negative impact on the country’s bars and restaurant businesses.



The Restaurant Association of South Africa (RASA) CEO Wendy Alberts says the hard lockdown put a strain on several restaurants that have had to permanently close their doors.



RASA ran a survey in which 23,000 restaurants across South Africa participated (during alert level two of the lockdown). Of that, 30% stated they have shut down while 50% said they do not know if they will be able to reopen due to massive overheads and debt.



“I am very heartsore for those restaurants that have lost their businesses and staff that have lost their jobs. So although this appears to be a win, there is no win in this space because people have lost, and people have been hurt,” says Alberts.



With lockdown restrictions now eased, the restaurants and bars are slowly returning to life. In this image, taken at SOD in Soweto, the South African summer seems to have revived conviviality in outdoor spaces.



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-art-of-the-matter">Art Of The Matter </h2>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="618" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Art-Of-The-Matter-1024x618.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-49375" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Art-Of-The-Matter-1024x618.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Art-Of-The-Matter-300x181.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Art-Of-The-Matter-768x463.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Art-Of-The-Matter-1536x927.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Art-Of-The-Matter-2048x1236.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Art-Of-The-Matter-400x240.jpg 400w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Art-Of-The-Matter-600x362.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure></div>



A child rides past a mural painted in August by South African artist Graham Mckuur, known as ‘Dimms’, on Kremetart Street in Eldorado Park Ext 3. The work is in tribute to Nathaniel Julius, a 16-year- old allegedly shot and killed by police in Johannesburg&#8217;s Eldorado Park. 



The teenager had Down Syndrome, which sent shockwaves on social media. According to BBC Africa, the family said Julius was shot for not answering police officers’ questions. News reports say that three officers have been arrested on charges of murder.



<h2 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading" id="h-room-for-change">Room For Change</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/room-for-change-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-49379" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/room-for-change-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/room-for-change-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/room-for-change-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/room-for-change-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/room-for-change-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/room-for-change-600x400.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure></div>



2020 definitely changed the way we work. the hard lockdown in level one of the pandemic saw emptying office spaces, until around alert level three when most companies gradually had staff trickling in to work. But with Covid-19 still a sore reality, most office-goers have slipped into the work-from-home mode for longer, or indefinitely. 



This has also amplified digitalization and the need for companies to quickly streamline technology to enable better workflow processes. The International Labour organization has also been reporting on the rise of the flexible workforce’. The final word on the future workplace is still being scripted.

00 Opening

The Year That Changed Everything

Tshepo Ralephata has been plying the roads to ferry essential services workers during the Level 5 lockdown in South Africa.







Modern heroes don’t wear capes; they either only don blue scrubs or show the willingness to offer a public service in the time of crisis.



In the time of Covid-19, today’s heroes are the men and women next door, and those on the streets, such as taxi owner, Tshepo Ralephata, who has been plying the roads to ferry essential services workers since the stringent days of the Level 5 lockdown in South Africa.



Ralephata has been working in the taxi industry for over 10 years now, but has never worked under “such life-threatening circumstances” as he is now, he observes. But he has to do so also to look after his family.



“I don’t think about being infected with the virus when I’m on the road because I have to make money, I need to pay rent, the kids have to eat any my partner is unemployed making me the only bread-winner, so I don’t have a choice, I have to work,” says Ralephata.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="683" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-094-1-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-45407" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-094-1-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-094-1-scaled-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-094-1-scaled-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-094-1-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-094-1-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-094-1-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-094-1-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-094-1-scaled.jpg 1707w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /></figure>



As a FORBES AFRICA photojournalist looking for great street images, I joined Ralephata in his taxi to document a day in his life in the time of lockdown. His blue Toyota Hiace minibus taxi is his mobile office and the permit to drive during the lockdown sees him working every two days; which has admittedly affected his daily earnings, which has come down from R1,400 to R650.



“We are only allowed to work from 5AM to 10AM and from 4PM to 8PM, the breaks are also an inconvenience. I can also only load 10 passengers at a time, while on the other hand, I buy my own sanitizers to make sure passengers maintain hygiene.”



Indeed, that is what Ralephata did after picking me up at a busstop. He leaned over with a disinfecting sanitizer and sprayed it on to my hands before I entered.



A kilometer into the trip, a young lady entering the taxi refused to be sanitized insisting that she had sanitized at home.



“This is what I deal with some days,” rues Ralephata.



On arrival at a taxi rank, I saw dozens of commuters going about their daily working lives wearing facemasks and gloves, hopping from one taxi to another.



The taxis at the rank are sanitized twice, but Ralephata laments they are not getting much support from the government because they have to buy their own protective gear.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="683" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-156-1-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-45408" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-156-1-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-156-1-scaled-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-156-1-scaled-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-156-1-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-156-1-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-156-1-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-156-1-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Tshepo-156-1-scaled.jpg 1707w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /></figure>



As we wait for the second load of passengers, Ralephata keeps his sanitizer close at hand and stands by the sliding door, spraying every passenger coming in.



On our way home, he tells me about his daily fears.



“When someone coughs or sneezes, I get scared and think that’s the virus. I just wish that the person is not carrying the virus,” he says.



The young entrepreneur is aware that his job could put his family at risk.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“When I go home after work, I sanitize my hands before holding the door handle, then I go straight to the bathroom for a hot bath and only then, can I bond with the kids.”</blockquote>



Covid-19 is crippling his business and he prays for a vaccine soon because his liquor store business has also been affected.



Ralephata is not reaching his daily targets but helping the community is as much an important motive for him.

Tshepo 084

A Day In The Life Of A Taxi Driver In Lockdown

Flying taxis sound like a futuristic idea, but Uber wants to test the idea in Los Angeles by 2020. The traffic-laden city is the second city in the US, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/briansolomon/2017/04/25/flying-cars-by-2020-uber-wants-you-to-push-button-g" target="_blank" rel="noopener">following Dallas-Fort Worth</a>, to be selected as a test bed for UberAir&#8217;s network of air taxis.
Uber&#8217;s plan is to string together a network of electrical vertical take-off and landing vehicles, commonly called eVTOL, and make them available on-demand. Similar to helicopters, the eVTOL aircraft would take off and land on the tops of buildings and be able to cover distances more quickly and directly compared to cars stuck in traffic on Los Angeles congested roads.
According to Uber&#8217;s own analysis, a 200-mph all electric ride across Los Angeles would be &#8220;price competitive&#8221; to an UberX ride of the same distance. It will also be much faster than a car ride on the ground, Uber claims. In one example, Uber&#8217;s research predicts that an UberAir ride from Los Angeles International Airport to the Staples Center would take less than 30 minutes using UberAir. An UberX ride between the same distances generally lasts closer to an hour and a half.
&#8220;Just as skyscrapers allowed cities to use limited land more efficiently, urban air transportation will use three-dimensional airspace to alleviate transportation congestion on the ground,&#8221; Uber wrote in its <a href="https://www.uber.com/info/elevate/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">white-paper on Uber Elevate</a>, its name for the overall network, which it unveiled in October 2016.
<a href="http://www.forbesafrica.com/technology/2017/08/29/ubers-ceo-pick-adds-pressure-resolve-boardroom-brawl/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">READ MORE: Uber&#8217;s CEO Pick Adds Pressure To Resolve Boardroom Brawl</a>
In Los Angeles, Uber plans to partner with Sandstone Properties to develop take-off and landing hubs for its network of eVTOL planes and plans to bring on additional real estate partners ahead of the anticipated launch, the company said. In addition to Los Angeles, Uber is working to launch similar tests in Dallas-Fort Worth and Dubai.
By the time the Olympics come to Los Angeles in 2028, Uber&#8217;s Chief Product Officer Jeff Holden said in a press release that he expects the service to be commercially available and already in &#8220;heavy use&#8221; by Los Angeles residents. At scale, the company envisions tens of thousands of flights happening in Los Angeles each day, according to Holden.
In April, Uber first announced that it had already signed on partners to produce the eVTOL aircraft to be used on the network, including <a href="http://www.aurora.aero/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Aurora Flight Sciences</a>,<a href="http://www.pipistrel-usa.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pipistrel Aircraft</a>, <a href="http://www.embraer.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Embraer</a>, <a href="http://www.mooney.com/en/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mooney</a>, and <a href="http://www.bellhelicopter.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bell Helicopter</a>.
<a href="http://www.forbesafrica.com/billionaires/2017/11/03/roadblock-elon-musks-net-worth-drops-800-million-day-amid-tesla-woes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">READ MORE: Elon Musk&#8217;s Net Worth Drops $800 Million In A Day Amid Tesla Woes</a>
But the choice of Los Angeles also means Uber will be working in what&#8217;s also a hotbed for next-generation aerospace activity. Along with Elon Musk’s <a href="http://www.spacex.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SpaceX</a>, Burt Rutan’s <a href="http://www.scaled.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Scaled Composites</a> that’s developing Paul Allen’s massive <a href="http://www.stratolaunch.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stratolaunch</a> plane and Richard Branson’s new <a href="https://virginorbit.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Virgin Orbit</a> operation in Long Beach, the region is home to growing cluster of startups. These include <a href="https://www.rocketlabusa.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rocket Lab</a>, <a href="http://www.phasefour.io/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Phase Four</a>, <a href="https://www.relativityspace.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Relativity</a>, <a href="http://whittinghillaerospace.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Whitinghill Aerospace</a>, <a href="http://masten.aero/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Masten Space Systems</a> and <a href="http://www.interorbital.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Interorbital Systems</a>. While Uber will be a new entrant into the already vibrant aerospace community, it&#8217;s already planning on holding its next aviation summit in Los Angeles in 2018.
&#8220;We are bringing UberAir to Los Angeles in no small part because Mayor Garcetti has embraced technology and innovation, making L.A. a hub for the future,&#8221; Holden said in the release. &#8220;In this case, technology will allow L.A. residents to literally fly over the city&#8217;s historically bad traffic, giving them time back to use in far more productive ways, whether more leisure time with friends and family or more time to work.&#8221; &#8211; Written by <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/bizcarson/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-ga-track="contrib block byline">Biz Carson </a>, FORBES STAFF

Uber Wants To Bring Its Flying Taxis To Traffic-Congested Los Angeles

It stands like a giant anthill in the city. In its shadow thousands of commuters swarm around street vendors under yellow and blue canvas to the hoots of hundreds of taxis that crawl through the streets like beetles. On level 50, you can see for miles on a crisp day, so long as the smog isn’t too thick.
The 223-meter-tall Carlton Centre, in the heart of Johannesburg, has stood for 42 years.
An army of construction workers built it and for years it was the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere. One of them was Englishman Eddy Warehan, a contracted steel fixer for Roberts Contraction (now Murray &amp; Roberts) from Southampton, who arrived with tools in hand in 1967. This year, he made his first trip back to South Africa in 47 years.
“Health and safety was quite different then. It was interesting. If you got caught without a hardhat on, you were in trouble. You couldn’t tread on a nail without a hardhat on… There were a few accidents but you don’t take any notice of it. We were more interested in getting the job done,” he says.
Danger lurked around every corner.
“The first work we did on the site was a spiral staircase. It went four or five floors underground in darkness. You had towers and a lift shaft going up, but they were open. If they put a gate over the entrance somebody would move it and take the scaffolding away for somewhere else. An African gentleman one day wanted to go to the toilet, stepped into this dark corner and went down 10 floors.”
Another time, a crane was the killer.
“A crane was lifting a corner strong back shutter. They were swinging it around and there were two African gentlemen on the next corner and they got swept off. They got caught in the safety net but they didn’t survive.”
With the bad memories came good. Warehan recalls climbing to the 30th floor to see Pretoria 67 kilometers away.  Unafraid, he would pause for photos hanging over the steel bars at a giddy height.
Warehan, a former Royal Marine, came to Africa on the cruise ship the S.A. Vaal, sailing from Southampton to Durban, as a utility steward. Like many Europeans, he came to Africa by chance.
“If someone falls sick you do [their job]. You can do anything. I was a jack of all trades and a master of none. After the fifth trip we were going back [to England] and there were three gentlemen who had been working in Johannesburg and were passengers. We met in the bar, having a talk and they asked what I did before. I was a Royal Marine and before that I was a steel fixer. They said they were looking for steel fixers at the Carlton Centre, and I said where the hell is that? He said in Johannesburg. He told me what the wages were and I said that sounds crazy,” says Warehan.
Working in Johannesburg was a far cry from working in England.
“It was like adding a nought onto your money. I was earning £25 a week now it was £250. I gave it a try. The first week’s money I sent home was £300. My wife said you can’t get £300 from £250. I said they made a mistake it was actually £350.”
It took seven years to build the Carlton Centre. In 1973, it became the $7.92-million mecca for African socialites. Down the years, the Carlton Hotel opened its doors to the likes of Henry Kissinger, Francois Mitterrand, Hillary Clinton, Margaret Thatcher, Whitney Houston and Mick Jagger.
“It was quite a city. I was impressed. We stayed in Harley Street. Just out of Hillbrow; near the freeway and a park. My first accommodation was in a digs, under the careful watch of an Afrikaans woman named Marsh. We were mostly construction workers from the Carlton.”
“We would go to a bar across the road at the end of the day, the Casa Mia. It was on the way back to the digs. That way you could get halfway back from where you wanted to spend the night before you have too many to get lost. Most of us drank Lion Lager.”
“My wife couldn’t believe it when she came over to Johannesburg. The prices were half the cost you would pay in the UK and you were doubling your money. The cost of living in Africa was cheap.”
“A gold Omega watch I bought in Johannesburg cost £250 at that time. Six years ago, I sent it back to get it serviced; its current value was £7,000.”
These days, the aging skyscraper is more a museum than a mecca. Where thousands of shoppers once walked are the shells of dusty stores, epitomized by the Sky Rink, the building’s abandoned ice rink. The 50th floor of the Carlton Centre, called the Top of Africa, still offers a panorama of the city and beyond, provided the windows are clean and you can find the lift in the basement.
The building is showing signs of coming back to life, claims the City of Johannesburg. The basement shopping center has come back from being almost empty to 93% capacity. They say that the Carlton Centre is again a bustling shopping precinct with shops like Soviet, Aca Joe, Totalsports, Levison and Pick n Pay.
Maybe, like Warehan’s gold Omega, it will appreciate in value.

Tag: Taxis

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