THE Gauteng provincial government has made formal submissions to the national government indicating its rejection of the implementation of e-tolls, the Citizen reported.
Gauteng MEC Jacob Mamabolo told the paper that the province is working with the national government to ensure e-tolls are stopped due to concerns of the financial impact of the system on motorists.
“We have made a very comprehensive submission to the president, the minister of finance and that of transport which we believe can resolve the e-toll matter once and for all.
“We have made a compelling case clearly stating that it is incorrect for residents of our province to be burdened with paying for e-tolls.”
Mamabolo said that his government is also opposed to the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) Act as a means of enforcing e-tolls in the province.
In February, transport minister Fikile Mbalula confirmed that his department is working towards a final answer on e-tolls.
“We are equally enjoined to finalise the funding and tariff structure on the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) by the end of this financial year,” he said.
E-tolls have met with resistance from road users since inception in 2013, leading to non-payment by many, and calls to scrap the system altogether.
In October 2020, Mbalula said that his department is being impeded from rolling out new road infrastructure projects because of a lack of resolution around e-tolls.
The minister said that president Ramaphosa’s cabinet is set to finalise a new funding model for the project after receiving proposals from his department.
Mbalula admitted that he thought the issue would have been resolved by now, but that the process has been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
(SOURCE: BUSINESSTECH SA)
