Threats of violence and disruption to the launch of the Bus Rapid Transport network amount to a war on the working class, the Congress of SA Trade Unions said on Saturday.

"Any attempt to prevent its [the BRT system's] launch by threats of violence and disruption...amounts to a war on the working class and an attempt to hold the country to ransom," said Cosatu spokesperson Patrick Craven in a statement.

"The travelling public has the right to safe, reliable and punctual public transport, and BRT has been designed to meet this demand."

Craven said the congress put its full support behind the BRT system.

"[Cosatu] utterly condemns threats by some taxi operators to threaten violence against drivers and passengers."

He said the federation had a long association with the taxi industry.

It would meet with the SA National Taxi Council on Monday, "and hopes to maintain a close relationship with the industry."

The BRT operations will be launched on Sunday in Johannesburg and will start operating on Monday.

The taxi industry had tried an eleventh hour court application to the High Court in Pretoria on Friday to prevent the launch of the BRT, but the judge did not give them the go-ahead for an urgent interdict to stop the buses.

The taxi industry has initially planned a strike to object to BRT, but according to the SA National Taxi Council (Santaco), this would not take place.

Taxi operators are worried that the government had asked it to register its routes and then proceeded to place the new bus system on those same routes without consulting it.