Cabinet has approved reduced tariffs for Gauteng motorists and exempted taxis and buses from taxation, but moves to institute toll roads in the Western Cape have been met with (official) resistance.
Despite a widespread and prolonged outcry from a weary South African public already heavily burdened by taxation, Cabinet recently approved toll tariffs for roads under the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) and delayed the implementation of further phases of the project until it has decided how best to find and allocate the billions of rand the project will require.
The decision to implement the tolls came after months of protest by organised labour, business associations and civil society groups – parties that were duly alarmed about the impact that taxation would have on the cost of living and commodity prices, let alone the pressure that could be exerted on non-national and suburban roads by commuters who will seek to avoid the tolled routes.
The state is committed to decreasing the use of roads as the preferred method of transport of commuters and freight in the country. In Gauteng, only 11 per cent of freight is transported by rail, but alarmingly, the province is also home to almost half of the country’s entire car population.
Be that as it may, the tariffs for light vehicles are down from 49,5 c/km (66 c/km initially) to 40 c/km, if you’re a biker you are five cents a kilo richer (24 c/km), medium vehicles (class B) will pay R1/km (down from R1,49), and “longer vehicles” (class C) R2/km (down from R2,97).
There are also discounts for those with e-tags, regular commuters, and those who travel outside rush hours, but in a blatant move to appease taxi operators and trade unions, taxis and buses have been exempted from toll tax, because those vehicles are said to make up “only two per cent of total traffic”.
The implementation of the additional toll roads to provide added funding for SA National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) projects has prompted fears that other greater metropolitan areas might be targeted next.
Sure enough, the City of Cape Town has threatened legal action if the State goes ahead with plans to develop the R10-billion winelands toll road project in the Western Cape. Cape Town mayoral committee member Brett Herron said the socio-economic impacts of tolling had not been adequately assessed and were not considered by the minister of environmental affairs when he granted an environmental authorisation for the tolling of the N1 and N2, it was reported this week.
Herron said yesterday he had written to transport minister, Sbu Ndebele, to inform him about the city’s declaration of a dispute under the Intergovernmental Relations Act against the proposed Western Cape project, which encompasses 105 km of the N1 highway between Cape Town and Worcester and a 70 km stretch of the N2 between Bot River and Cape Town. However, Sanral has rejected claims of a dispute with the City of Cape Town and contends that the agency “remains open for further engagement with the city’s officials”.
Sanral said it had engaged with the City of Cape Town over a period of nine years on the toll project. “During the intent-to-toll process the Cape Town was given an opportunity to participate prior to the final decision being made by the minister of transport to declare the road a toll road. If Cape Town was dissatisfied with this decision it could have taken steps to review the minister's decision.
"Similarly, Cape Town was extensively engaged in the environmental impact assessment process that was finalised in 2008. If the city was dissatisfied with the decision to authorise the project it was entitled to appeal the decision in accordance with the legislative process, but didn’t,” it stressed.
Read CAR columnist Ivo Vegter's submission on the toll road issue: It tolls for thee on www.carmagblog.co.za.
