Two months on from the implementation of what has been one of the most contentious issues between government and Gauteng citizens, in particular, over the past two years, and the backlash to e-tolls continues unabated.
Since Gauteng's e-roads - 45 gantries across the province's highways - went live on 3 December, the SA National Roads Agency (Sanral) has come under fire for a number of issues. While many of these emerged post-implementation, a chunk originated from public defiance ahead of e-tolling in Gauteng, which civil society groups fought tooth and nail to prevent.
In the last month alone, Sanral has been hit with criticism over its lax online security that left users vulnerable to online predators, an inefficient billing system resulting in erroneous invoices - perceived by many as threatening - being sent out, and has suffered three serious disruptions to its central operations centre (COC) due to anthrax and bomb threats.
Taxi tempers
This morning, the National Taxi Alliance (NTA) held a protest across major Johannesburg highway routes "against government's failure to issue operating licences to its members" resulting in some taxi operators having to pay for e-tolls - despite the public transport vehicles being deemed e-toll exempt.
Sanral says there are a number of taxi operators that have not yet received their operating licences from the Department of Transport (DOT), and so "the system does not recognise their vehicles as exempt and they are being billed".
Sanral spokesperson Vusi Mona says the roads agency is taking interim measures to assist taxi operators that are being billed, while they await their licences. "We have asked the taxi associations to give us lists of their members' vehicles, with all the necessary documentation, so that they can be loaded on to the system and can be identified as exempt vehicles."
Taxi operators that have been billed already, he says, will receive a credit note and will not be held liable for the outstanding amounts.
Sanral has been accused of letting taxis off the hook out of fear, but the state-owned agency says the accusations are unfounded and untrue.
A few months ago, Outa contested the fact that taxis - which it said do not constitute public transport - received "free passage". The alliance said the decision was introduced shortly prior to the planned initial launch date in early 2011, as the taxi industry had threatened to blockade the freeways and boycott the system should taxis be forced to pay e-toll fees.
Mona responded by saying no one is excluded from using public transport - including taxi services. "Then you have people who own their own vehicles, who can afford to pay for the maintenance of improved roads."
There are currently about 46 000 exempt taxis registered on Sanral's system.
Inciting e-mails
While many have taken to social media simply to vent anger and frustration at the new highway tax, online platforms are also being used to rally support against e-tolls - resulting in what Sanral says is misinformation.
Sanral and the Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) yesterday condemned e-mail campaigns it says aim to scare road users in Gauteng through misinformation.
"There is an e-mail doing the rounds that warns road users of illegal roadblocks on the e-roads and which are purportedly conducted by Sanral and the JMPD in order to force road users to buy e-tags."
Sanral says there are no such roadblocks planned, and no individual or organisation - including itself - can force road users to get an e-tag. "Sanral advises road users who wish to qualify for the built-in discounts afforded to registered users to purchase an e-tag, but the decision to do so remains a voluntary one."
JMPD spokesperson Superintendent Wayne Minnaar confirms the body has not issued any instructions to set up roadblocks in order to check for e-tags - nor does it plan to. "Members of the public should remain sceptical of e-mails that do not come from official entities and they should immediately report any officials who attempt to force them to buy an e-tag."
Potential plot
Meanwhile, security experts have warned the unsavoury mix of e-toll defiance and Sanral's lack of the sophisticated online security measures that a project of this magnitude and nature should have is destined to result in opportunistic scams.
Wolfpack recently warned of inevitable phishing scams using Sanral's name and logo. Its operations manager, Manuel Corregedor, says it is not only very simple for individuals to set up phishing scams, but the time is also ripe for such cyber crime, given that e-tolling is such a hot topic at the moment.
Google defines phishing as: "The fraudulent practice of sending e-mails purporting to be from reputable companies in order to induce individuals to reveal personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers, online." The cyber malpractice also involves the sending of SMSes - sometimes referred to as "smishing".
Sanral has yet to respond to queries regarding whether it has contingency plans in place in the event of a phishing attack.
IT fail
ITWeb is also awaiting feedback from Sanral on how the agency - and the company contracted to run the e-tolls IT and online system, Electronic Tolling Company (ETC) - plans to mitigate further serious breaches of users' privacy.
Sanral has said it takes the security of road users' data very seriously - and two weeks ago said it had taken steps to identify potential security holes that could render personal information vulnerable - but has yet to release details of an ETC investigation it says followed the discovery of online flaws or inform users whose details may have been accessed.
ITWeb has verbally requested and sent repeated e-mail requests for this information, since 17 January.
At least three separate online security issues have been identified within Sanral's IT system since the end of last year - some the result of elementary oversights - leading security pundits doubting the agency's readiness.
Sanral pays ETC in the region of R25 million per month for the operating costs of e-tolls, including the rental of e-toll kiosks across Gauteng, rates and taxes, and e-toll maintenance.
'Terrorist' intent
In other news, the individual arrested last week in connection with two separate anthrax scares and a bomb threat at Sanral's COC has been released due to a lack of evidence.
National spokesperson for the Hawks, captain Paul Ramaloko, told ITWeb this morning the law-enforcement entity was not happy with a National Prosecuting Authority's decision not to prosecute the 28-year-old Soweto man (employed by ETC at Sanral's COC) - and that investigations would continue.
The Hawks made the arrest after being led to the suspect via his cellphone, which was used to call in a bomb threat on 26 January. The suspect appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate's court on Friday.
"We are not happy about the decision [to throw the case out of court]. We have a different view. We feel that we should have been given a seven-day postponement [in order to] bring additional evidence required. We confiscated the cellphone used to make the call and had no reason [to free] the suspect."
In light of the perceived problems, however, Sanral says it is encouraged by the take up of e-tags, and the system is operating well. The roads agency last month said almost a million e-tags had been sold.
According to Sanral, about 2.5 million motorists in Gauteng touch the e-toll freeways and of these, about a million are regular users (weekday commuters) on the freeways.
Outa yesterday said it was in the process of conducting further research to verify the increase in e-tag numbers in vehicles. "There is no doubting the fact that Sanral's intimidatory tactics of implying criminalising non-payment resulted in many people and businesses fitting e-tags over the past month; however, we believe the number is still well below the levels required for success and that the system remains plagued by many problems which will make it unworkable over time."
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