Truckers continue to fight R3.50/km toll proposal

The challenge against the toll fees proposed by the SA National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) for the network of Gauteng freeways – and slammed as “exorbitant” by truckers’ body, the Road Freight Association (RFA) – has advanced a pace. The objection is about considerably more than just peanuts, according to RFA. Sanral has suggested tolling truckers at a rate of R3.50 per kilometre on its toll roads. It is reckoned that over 40 tolls are planned across all of Gauteng’s freeways from April 2011 – and from Soweto to Sandton, West Rand to East, and Johannesburg to Pretoria, tolls will be situated on average every 10-km. Talking to RFA CEO, Sharmini Naidoo, and technical and operations manager, Gavin Kelly, FTW was told that they had heard that these proposed levies were supposed to go before the Minister of Transport in August – which makes them likely to be officially signed into stone in September. “But,” said Kelly, “we have been trying to find out right throughout this process just HOW the Sanral economists got to this R3.50/km figure.” One vague muttering from Sanral had been that trucks needed to be charged at a fivetime multiple of the 70c/km proposed for cars, but nothing has been put on paper. However, senior management at Sanral has now given clearance for RFA representatives to talk to the economic brains behind the proposed scheme, Naidoo told FTW. “But we are no further forward than that yet,” she added, when the association duo talked to us on July 14.