JOHANNESBURG SOUTH – THE ANC government is considering scrapping e-tolls as a way to fund Gauteng’s freeways. This is according to a report in the Sunday Independent newspaper.
The report states that while e-tolls have not been scrapped yet, the Gauteng government has noted the dissatisfaction of motorists.
Gauteng Transport MEC Ismail Vadi told the newspaper that they are taking a second look at e-tolls in the province.
“E-tolls still remain a valid option, but there are also discussions about a provincial fuel levy or a provincial tax or shadow tolling,” he said.
However, Vadi said that government will not scrap the existing e-tolls. “There will be no review of phase one of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project,” he said.
Sanral’s e-tolling system has come under fire since its inception, with many Gauteng motorists refusing to pay for e-tolls.
The latest figures show that Gauteng motorists have run up more than half a billion rand in overdue fees since the province’s e-tolling system started on December 3 last year. Less than 10 percent of this has been paid.
“I am informed that… as of March 1 (this year) an amount of R543,544,574 worth of invoices were transferred to the VPC (Violations Processing Centre),” Transport Minister Dipuo Peters said in written reply to a parliamentary question.
The VPC is the debt-collection division within the SA National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) responsible for the collection and processing of overdue e-toll transactions.
In March 2014 the Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance (Outa) announced that it has lodged a subsidiary complaint with the public protector against Sanral after receiving “damning information from a source inside the e-toll system”.
Outa said that the new allegations stem from experiences of a well placed source inside the system.
The source confirmed Outa’s views of mismanagement stemming from Sanral’s extremely high risk strategy to develop an electronic tolling infrastructure for the entire country.
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I won’t pay e tolls because we pay tax its a rip-off as its is this country is suffering so please the sooner they stop e-tolling the better. Thank-you Winnie Pieters
ek wil net weet hoe dom moet n mens wees as jy met jou motor en karevaan ry dan kry jy twee afsonderlike rekeninge, een vir die motor en een vir die karevaan, as jy navraag doen dan moet ek nou konsuis n beedige verklaring gaan afle by die sap dat altwee myne is, maar hulle kan mos sien op hulle foto dat ek dit gesleep het