The contested Gauteng e-tolling system, part of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP), was set to start on December 3, Transport Minister Dipuo Peters announced on Wednesday at a media briefing in Pretoria.

She noted that the date of implementation was not influenced by the upcoming festive season, stressing that e-tolling had to be implemented according to law, namely the Transport Laws and Related Matters Amendment Act approved by President Jacob Zuma in September. 

Peters said the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) should be allowed to start collecting toll fees to begin repayment of the R20-billion debt incurred owing to work undertaken under the first phase of the GFIP.

“We cannot afford to continue to expose Sanral’s portfolio to any further financial risks [as it has] suffered two downgrades by international credit rating institutions,” she pointed out.

Sanral CEO Nazir Alli said the announcement of the e-tolling start date was “good news”, adding that Sanral could now get on with its business of building, maintaining and improving South Africa’s national road network.

He commented that the tolling system, on the inner Gauteng highways, was up and running and, therefore, expected a smooth beginning to the collection of tolls to service the debt it incurred to “upgrade these vital roads”.

Alli said it was important to note that of the more than 700 000 km of roads in South Africa, which had the tenth-largest road network in the world, only 19 704 km formed part of the national network and were, thus, Sanral’s responsibility.

“Of the latter, only 16% are tolled – some 3 120 km. Of the tolled roads, only 201 km form part of the GFIP,” said Alli, noting that these figures were important to keep a proper perspective.

Peters said she was confident that Sanral would be able to execute the task of collecting e-toll tariffs from motorists and would do so “exceptionally well”.

Further, she noted that urban tolling could only work through an electronic collection system given the traffic volumes that form part of busy metropolitans such as Gauteng, adding that there was a continuous need to work on decongesting roads to allow for the smooth flow of traffic.

“Apartheid spatial planning never envisaged a situation where Gauteng was as populated as it is today, mainly due to the influx of people from different provinces for economic reasons,” explained Peters, noting that the ever-growing congestion on the highways, particularly between Pretoria and Johannesburg, was reaching crisis proportions.

“Sanral had to approach the markets to raise at least R20-billion to implement the upgrades. This was due to the inadequacy of resources to respond to what was becoming a ticking time bomb, waiting to explode.”

Based on conservative assumptions, the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry reported that the cost of congestion on the former Ben Schoeman highway amounted to R15-million an hour. This excluded costs associated with fuel and maintenance, late freight deliveries, lost business opportunities and accident costs.

Peters said Gauteng was the economic hub of South Africa and full of potential, but this could only be realised if the province had the necessary infrastructure required to exploit its full potential. “Good roads are not an exception in this regard.”

But, in a statement released on Wednesday, Democratic Alliance (DA) Gauteng premier candidate Mmusi Maimane said it was a sad day for Gauteng and for South Africa that the widespread public opposition to the e-tolling system was “blatantly ignored” by government.

He said the GFIP was expected to cover about 560 km of the freeway network in Gauteng. “Considering that the first phase of this system only covers around 185 km, the network is set to more than double.”

Future routes, Maimane stated, were expected to be along the N14 Krugersdorp highway, sections of the M1, the N14 to Pretoria, the N3 to Heidelberg, the R59 and sections of the N12.

“Whether directly or indirectly, the majority of Gauteng residents will eventually pay the cost of e-tolling, while residents who are not regular road users will feel the pinch through increased food and living expenses,” he added.

The DA submitted a High Court application in early November in an attempt to delay the roll-out of e-tolls on Gauteng’s freeways, believing that the Transport Laws and Related Matters Amendment Bill was incorrectly passed by Parliament and signed into law by Zuma.

The Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance on November 8 welcomed the DA and Freedom Front Plus announcements that they would file legal papers of additional challenges to the constitutionality and lawfulness of the e-toll regulations and other related matters.

Meanwhile, Peters said: “We agree with [the Congress of South African Trade Unions] and other organisations that the debate needs to be elevated to serious discussion aimed at finding means to fund the much-needed transport infrastructure in the country,” adding that South Africa’s current road infrastructure backlog stood at R150-billion.

She encouraged motorists who had not registered for e-tolling to do so, as unregistered motorists would be levied almost double the cost a kilometre.

“You also need to register to have access to the discounts offered by Sanral,” said Peters, referring to the 66c/km tariff being reduced to 30c/km for light motor vehicles.

Alli concurred, saying that with all uncertainty out of the way, motorists were encouraged to obtain an e-tag. “It is the right thing to do and also easier and cheaper than using the roads without a tag.”

However, Civil rights organisation AfriForum said on Wednesday it would not register its company vehicles for e-toll.

AfriForum CEO Kallie Kriel pointed out that, if enough motorists refused to register for the tolls, the system would become impractical, forcing Sanral to reconsider e-tolling.

As a result, the system would simply not be cost-effective, he stated, adding that no one was legally obliged to buy an e-tag.

AfriForum said it would leave registration for e-tolling up to every member of the public, with due consideration of the costs involved, to decide for themselves whether they wanted to join AfriForum in this civil protest action.

"If the public accepts e-tolling, an expensive system with high administrative costs, without protest, government will be able to launch similar projects without considering more cost-effective recoupment methods," emphasised Kriel.