Catering for passengers and freight on Zim- Gauteng route

Pioneer Coaches – part of the Pioneer Corporation Africa group – is catering for both freight and passengers on its services between South Africa and Zimbabwe. The service caters for traders on buying trips to South Africa, as well as expatriate Zimbabweans visiting home. Three services a day are offered between Zimbabwe and South Africa. “We are the only Zimbabwean passenger service operator with our own offices at Park Station, Johannesburg,” says Pioneer Corporation Africa chief executive officer Albert Ushe. For a “reasonable fare” from Harare, traders travel to Gauteng where they visit wholesalers and other suppliers to stock up on products to sell in Zimbabwean stores and at flea markets, he says. Pioneer’s other bus services terminate in Musina for passengers to do their shopping at the border. The buses pull large trailers, which are used to carry the goods on the return leg. Pioneer Coaches is set to open up new routes in the region over the next five years, including services to Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia, as well as new destinations in South Africa.