E-tolls could impact property value
THE PARKS - It appears that e-toll woes could go beyond affecting citizens’ wallets – property prices could drop in neighbourhoods on the toll routes.
This was according to Marina Constas, director at BBM Attorneys.
The specialist sectional title lawyer said that suburban dwellers did not consider the lateral implications of the tolling system on property prices of freestanding homes and sectional title developments.
“Urban migration, which could alter the Gauteng residential property landscape, and changes in urban development patterns, are issues that we should be considering,” she added.
Constas cited overseas studies which highlighted areas where traffic went through suburbia, which resulted in these neighbourhoods seeing a decline in property values.
Added to the problem, the director noted, is the inability of local government to deal with the demands placed on suburban roads.
Examples of these difficulties, Constas said, are the problems municipalities had when it came to dealing with everyday issues such as the wear and tear of streets; according to Constas it would only be exacerbated once traffic volume increased and heavier vehicles started using the routes.
Constas also noted that property developers would consider e-tolls in an area before planning projects, predicting that the tolling system would change urban development patterns.
“E-toll implications are much more far-reaching than the average disgruntled motorist realises,” Constas concluded.
