The Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance (OUTA), the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and several other organisations are more adamant than ever that e-tolling should not go ahead.
However, OUTA says it is clear that government plans to roll out e-tolling before the court review in November, if indications given by the Department of Transport (DOT) and the SA National Roads Agency (Sanral) are anything to go by.
It points to comments by transport minister Ben Martins urging motorists to buy e-tags and by Sanral CEO Nazir Alli that a decision to move on must be made and that Sanral can not satisfy everyone.
Charm offensive
OUTA says it is more adamant than ever before that the decision to toll the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) was a poor one taken by the authorities.
"Since having access to the ETC contract, for which we had to sign a confidentiality agreement, our expert transport economist's assessment of the numbers and efficiency of e-tolls has revealed that the plan suffers from oversights and is a most inefficient manner in which to fund the R17 billion freeway upgrade," says OUTA chairperson Wayne Duvenage.
The association expects the inter-ministerial committee (IMC) on e-tolling to announce its plans sometime this weekend or next week.
"We envisage they will further reduce the e-toll tariffs as well as the capped maximum charge, as they go on the charm offensive to woo the public into believing this is the best option. We also believe their announcement will include the acceptance of e-tolling by a few entities that were originally opposed to the plan."
Half pregnant
OUTA still firmly opposes the application of e-tolling, saying the structure of SA's economy and the need to support those who lack many of the basic services, means it is important that the most cost-efficient and effective funding methods are applied.
"The reality, however, is that you can't be 'half pregnant' on e-tolls. You either e-toll or you don't. A lesser amount of the wrong method doesn't make it any more right."
Cliff Johnston of the SA National Consumer Union says the cost of collection and the bureaucratic burden e-tolling will place on society are independent of the actual amount charged per kilometre.
"Indeed, as the toll rate per km falls, the collection costs become an increasingly larger percentage of the amount collected. This is the ultimate tragedy of the plan.
"The road user will still have to foot the bill of more than R1.1 billion per annum to cover the electronic toll collection process, regardless of how much they reduce the toll rate and cross-subsidise the revenue required with fuel levies and/or the national fiscus mechanisms."
Consultation formality
Cosatu has expressed shock at Martins' call for motorists to purchase e-tags already since a meeting is still to take place between the federation and the IMC to discuss whether the tolls will be implemented or not.
It also says he should be aware that Cosatu and the vast majority of Gauteng are totally opposed to the imposition of e-tolls, and a joint Cosatu/ANC task team is still investigating alternative ways of funding road improvements.
"How can the minister therefore possible justify urging people to spend money on a system which is still the subject of consultation and review, and will in all probability be rejected by the people of the province?"
The federation says the minister's announcement appears to imply that the ongoing consultations and the court review are mere formalities and a public relations exercise, and that e-tolling will be going ahead anyway.
"If that is the case, Cosatu will mobilise its members in their thousands to oppose this attempt to privatise a public asset and force motorists, including thousands of workers, to pay large amounts of money to get to and from work and attend family events, or to be forced to use slow, pot-holed alternative routes.
"In the meantime, we urge motorists not to buy e-tags and to support the mass campaign against e-tolling."
Cancel contract
SA Tourism Services Association CEO Michael Tatalias says "forcing e-tolling onto the citizens of SA is a gross injustice and implies that citizens' intellect is being taken for granted by the authorities, that they are unable to detect when a planned revenue/tax collection system is a waste of their hard earned money and time".
Democratic Alliance Gauteng transport spokesperson Neil Campbell says government must scrap the existing e-toll contract. "The penalty costs for cancelling the contract would be much cheaper than maintaining the hugely expensive e-toll collection costs."
He adds that it would be foolish for national government to announce the long-delayed implementation of e-tolling anytime soon, given the formal review of the system in the North Gauteng High Court on 26 November.
"The dogged determination of cabinet to stick to an overpriced, unaffordable and hugely unpopular toll collection system reeks of arrogance of the grandest order."
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