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E-tolls for Christmas

Bonnie Tubbs
By Bonnie Tubbs, ITWeb telecoms editor.
Johannesburg, 26 Oct 2012
The tariffs released publicly today are not carved in stone, says transport minister Ben Martins
The tariffs released publicly today are not carved in stone, says transport minister Ben Martins

E-tolling is going ahead. Implementation will begin just before Christmas and government's agenda is now centred on details, rather than debate.

This is according to parties instrumental in the e-tolling process - including the Department of Transport (DOT) and the SA National Roads Agency (Sanral). The e-toll ball was set rolling today when the DOT gazetted proposed tariffs for motorists who will pass through the 49 gantries across Gauteng.

The gazetting of tariffs follows a recommendation by the inter-ministerial committee (IMC) on the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP), which the concept of e-tolling funds, on Wednesday.

The IMC, says Minister of Transport Ben Martins, has conclusively decided that Sanral should proceed with the implementation of the e-tolling system. However, the decision comes just a month before a challenge to the concept is heard in the High Court.

Government Gazette number 35756 publicly gives tariffs for standard, e-tag, alternative users, discounted rates and exemptions from payment of tolls. According to proposed tariffs, motorists with e-tags will pay 30c per km - down from the original 49.5c proposed in 2011.

The release of the tariffs marks a 30-day period for public comment, after which government will take 14 days to consider input and publish its final position. Government will then take a further 14 days to re-gazette the tariffs.

According to Martins, this is when the public can expect to start being charged for using Gauteng's roads. That means 58 days from today - taking it to 24 December, Christmas Eve.

New tariffs

The Government Gazette tables the tariffs in three main categories: Class A, Class B and Class C - light, medium-heavy and heavy vehicles respectively.

The base tariff has been gazetted at 58c per km, which is what a motorist (light motor vehicle) will pay if they do not have an e-tag. This is almost halved, to 30c per km, with the possession of an e-tag. Heavy vehicles will be charged at R1.50 per km (down from the R2.97 proposed last year).

In addition to the normal fees, a "penalty" tariff has also been tabled - three times the base tariff (R1.74/km) - for "potential violators".

The gazette also proposes monthly caps on the amounts respective motorists will pay. These are set at R550 for motorbikes and ordinary cars, R1 750 for medium-heavy vehicles and R3 500 for heavy vehicles.

'Not that bad'

Sanral project manager Alex van Niekerk says results of the live testing of e-toll transactions for road users with e-tag accounts (which started in April) reveal that - contrary to popular opinion - the vast majority of motorists will not actually be hit that hard by e-toll fees.

According to the DOT's "actual" monthly toll costs for e-tag holders as recorded by the toll system over the last seven months, about 79% of motorists (class A) will end up paying less than R100 per month; 91% less than R200 per month and 96% will get away with paying less than R300 per month.

"Only about 0.2% of motorists in this category will actually reach or pay the cap of R550 per month," says van Niekerk.

Fair fees

Van Niekerk says he encourages what Martins refers to as a "spirit of early compliance". Getting an e-tag only stands to benefit motorists, he says.

Martins says government believes it has gone the right route in following a consultation process, in the process "setting the scene for compliance".

He says the tariffs and terms of the imminent e-tolling system are "fair and reasonable" and offer "convenience, safety and value for money for those using the improved freeways in Gauteng".

"It is our conviction that the GFIP is an important contributor to keeping SA's economic hub moving. The country's first multi-lane free-flow system using electronic toll collection provides road users with a smoother and safer journey.

According to government's stance, the tariffs introduced today essentially mark the beginning of the end of the protracted debate around e-tolling in Gauteng.

Martin says input on today's gazetted tariffs will be given serious consideration. "Fees that have been articulated today are not carved in stone, otherwise the consultation period would be pointless."

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