First salvos fired in battle against cross-border permit hikes

The truckers’ legal battle against what are termed “fatal” increases in crossborder permit costs is now in the first round, with the initial salvos being exchanged between the two legal teams in the precourt session, according to Gavin Kelly, technical and operations manager of the Road Freight Association (RFA). “It’s a bit of a to-and-fro between the lawyers,” he told FTW, “with the date for the hearing of the action not yet fixed – although I hope that the judge will make a favourable finding by about mid-October.” The SA trucking industry is fighting for the massive permit cost hikes to be rescinded, claiming that it could put a number of crossborder companies out of business. The cost, for example, of a 12-month new/renewal permit for Freight Class 2 (the classification into which the standard cross-border truck fits) now stands at R5 720, a 239.88% increase over the previous cost of R1 690. Added to that is the Cross-Border Road Transport Agency (CBRTA) demand for a separate permit for each country on a trucker’s delivery/collection schedules. The road transport industry was driven into an enormously expensive legal action because lengthy, high-level negotiations with the department of transport and the CBRTA came to naught. The truckers’ case is based on their claim that the minister of transport was wrongly advised on the cross-border permit issue, and they are asking that the new charges be withdrawn with immediate effect.