E-tolls decision by October? Don’t hold your breath, according to OUTA

Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula says cabinet will announce its decision on the future of e-tolls as a funding mechanism for Gauteng freeways in October this year. However, Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) chief executive Wayne Duvenage tells BizNews it has heard these sorts of commitments for years. Mbalula told a press conference last week that one funding option on the table was to increase the fuel levy in Gauteng, but in light of the skyrocketing fuel prices and the increasing burden on consumers, this was no longer an option. Duvenage says, “They’ve already allocated funds via Treasury to Sanral to offset these Gauteng Freeway Improvement bonds to the tune of over R14bn in the last six years. So, they’ve been practising that mechanism of financing for some time now.” Electronic toll collection, known as e-tolls, is wildly unpopular and the vast majority of motorists have refused to pay. Duvenage believes the highest payment compliance rate Sanral was able to achieve was 40% in June 2014. It is widely acknowledged that compliance rates of over 90% are required for the funding model to be feasible. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices