The Cross-Border Road Transport Agency’s (C-BRTA) Cross-Easy permit application system marks a watershed moment for the agency and its journey towards digital permits and law enforcement.According to C-BRTA chief operating officer Nchaupe Maepa, this online permit application system has been a long time in the making and brings about much change.“It undoubtedly eases the process of doing business with the C-BRTA through the provision of a digitised solution to cross-border road transport operators. Cross-Easy allows operators to register and apply for cross-border permits from the comfort of their office or home.”Permit applications have long been the bane of many transporters’ lives, with complaints about manual applications at the C-BRTA’s offices often described as arduous and costly. The new system changes the face of permit applications completely.For Maepa, this is a clear indication of the agency’s commitment to developing solutions that ease cross-border cargo f low, making it an easier and friendlier environment for operators.The C-BRTA is also working on the Operator Compliance Accreditation Scheme (OCAS), an intelligent, risk-based profiling system aimed at implementing qualitative regulation, as contemplated in various policies and strategies propagated by government and by regional programmes. “OCAS supports the objectives of the National Development Plan’s Vision 2030, as well as the White Paper on National Transport Policy, the Public Transport Strategy, the National Freight Logistics Strategy and the Road Freight Strategy,” said Maepa.“In addition, the OCAS is aligned to the objectives of the SADC Protocol on Transport, Communications and Meteorology, the Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA), the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the Tripartite Transport Transit Facilitation Programme (TTTFP) regarding the need for harmonisation. “It is about developing a transport system that’s able to enhance intra-regional and intra-Africa trade, as well as regional integration and competitiveness. Through this system, the C-BRTA will implement an accreditation framework that separates compliant from non-compliant operators, with a view to prioritising the facilitation of seamless movement for compliant operators.”Another innovation that the agency is considering is the Cross-Border Commercial Vehicle Reservation System, an online platform that will enable operators to make a booking to cross the border by joining an online queue or by reserving a particular timeslot. “The system, once completed, will manage and improve the movement of commercial vehicles, be they freight or passenger, at border posts. It will not interfere with existing automation systems such as that of the South African Revenue Service,” said Maepa. “There are indeed challenges in the cross-border sector, but we are working on developments to address several of these. The C-BRTA is also strengthening partnerships and collaboration with transport operators, transport associations and stakeholders in the country and the region. “This will be important going forward, given that there are many stakeholders operating in corridors and border posts who may be affected or may be required to ensure the successful rollout of some of these interventions.