There are a number of “inconvenient truths” often ignored in the debate around tolling the 201 km of Gauteng highways upgraded during the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP), says South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) CEO Nazir Alli.
He says the fuel levy – often touted as the preferred method of payment for the infrastructure upgrades – will need to increase by R3.60 a litre in 2014 money terms plus inflation over ten years to accommodate the demands of South Africa’s road network.
“Of course there was a huge outcry saying it is only 15c a litre. Yes, it will be 15c a litre if we think about 201 km of roads, but as government, we cannot only think of 201 km of roads. We have 750 000 km we have to look after,” says Alli.
He adds that the fuel levy is a diminishing income source, with electric vehicles, using no fuel, poised to become mainstream over the next few years.
“But electric vehicles still need roads.”
Alli notes that a national general fuel levy is also an inequitable method of securing funding for Gauteng’s toll road network, as “people who will never use it, will pay for it. But this is an inconvenient truth we do not want to accept”.
He adds that governments globally have only one real source of income – tax, with borrowings not classified as income.
He says this income has to meet many infrastructure demands in South Africa, which is an impossible task.
He notes several projects, such as housing and social grants, that can be dropped in favour of “free roads”.
He acknowledges that South Africa has to increase its tax base.
He also acknowledges that communication around the toll project should have been better.
“We will have to up the ante on our communication.”
Alli also emphasises that the effect of nonpayment on Gauteng’s toll roads will have a spill-over effect on, for example, the financial ratings of the country and other government institutions, and ultimately, also the working environment of the private sector.
“Everything is interconnected, but again this is an inconvenient truth.”
Without Phase 2 of the GFIP in the pipeline, a project such as the Ekurhuleni Aerotropolis would “choke before it even started”, for example.
Alli also laments the “deadly silence” of those who should be supporting the implementation of toll roads, such as professionals whose jobs depended on technologies such as electronic toll collection systems.
The media has to be “a bit fairer” when reporting on the debate surrounding Gauteng’s toll roads, he adds.
He says a widely publicised Ipsos survey found that 34% of respondents believe the toll tariffs are reasonable, compared with 38% who say the tariffs are unreasonable.
“There is a 4% difference, which I believe in the emotionally charged atmosphere we have been working in, is splitting hairs. But what has the narrative been? Because this is an inconvenient truth again, the narrative has been about those people who disagree.
“Why do we never want to discuss these things in a fair and reasonable manner?
“In the debate right now, the culture of nonpayment is what we are promoting and the high tolerance for white collar crime.
“All we hear are the voices of those who say no all the time,” says Alli.
•Alli spoke at the Intelligent Transport Society South Africa’s i-Transport conference, held in Johannesburg in May.