Subscribe

Sanral praises govt commitment to e-tolls

Bonnie Tubbs
By Bonnie Tubbs, ITWeb telecoms editor.
Johannesburg, 27 Feb 2015
Finance minister Nhlanhla Nene says government has changed its stance on the principle of cost recovery from road users.
Finance minister Nhlanhla Nene says government has changed its stance on the principle of cost recovery from road users.

While finance minister Nhlanhla Nene's budget this week may have left a bitter taste in the mouths of many motorists - particularly those subject to the e-toll system in Gauteng - the SA National Roads Agency (Sanral) has applauded his endorsement of the user-pay principle.

Not only have motorists been hit with higher road accident and fuel levies, Nene also made it clear in Budget 2015 on Wednesday that government's fiercely disputed e-toll system was not going to be replaced or even side-lined. Only in October would the "financial relief" Gauteng premier David Makhura alluded to during his State of the Province Address this week be instituted, Nene said.

Despite the recent e-toll review introduced by Makhura and the ongoing resistance to the system, Nene said government remained committed to the principle of cost recovery from road users.

Nene added the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) - the multibillion-rand project for which e-tolling was created in the first place - did not warrant government forking out from its own coffers.

Compliance hopes

Sanral has high praise for the finance minister's stance that the user-pay principle is the "key foundation of infrastructure development", with spokesperson Vusi Mona saying Nene's view "bodes well for sustaining world-class road infrastructure in SA".

Mona says Sanral hopes Nene's "announcement of some relief" for e-toll road users would bolster compliance.

Since its inception in December 2013, the system has seen more opposition than acceptance, from various quarters, achieving a compliance rate of about 35%, as opposed to the 95% Sanral initially hoped to achieve.

Mona says the state-owned roads agency is "pleased with the signal sent" by the budget speech. "This will enable us to plan better as to how we will service the GFIP debt while continuing to maintain the road. Also, it should send a positive message to investors and rating agencies about policy certainty and government's commitment to the user-pay principle."

Last month, rating agency Moody's dropped Sanral's status from stable to negative. The agency has conceded that, while it is solvent - thanks to its 85% non-toll portfolio - non-payment of tolls has had a negative impact on the debt levels in the toll portfolio.

Meanwhile, Gauteng motorists wait to hear the final conclusion arising from Makhura's e-toll review, instigated last year to evaluate the socio-economic impact of the system. Deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to deliver this by the end of February, or tomorrow.

Share