Gauteng motorists continue to suffer as e-Tolls are not scrapped

The National Treasury confirmed during a parliamentary debate on the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) this week, that e-Tolls have not been scrapped and will become an income generator for Gauteng.

Although the debt has been taken over by government, the management of e-Tolls has now been transferred to the Gauteng Provincial Government and the gantries could possibly remain operational.

It is likely that this will be used to pay the percentage the 70/30 split of e-Toll debt that the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) and national government will take over from the South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL).

It is kind of mind boggling that the e-Toll system will remain, despite the initial debt for this unwanted system being covered by the government.

It is a reasonable expectation that e-Tolls must be scrapped considering that the debt will be settled. The DA demands that Gauteng Premier, Panyaza Lesufi , must urgently outline how this system is going to work. We will continue the fight for e-Tolls to be scrapped in this province.

Urgent e-Toll decision required

News that SANRAL has issued a tender for the management of the controversial e-toll system in July, makes a decision on the future of e-tolls by cabinet an urgent one.

The tender was adertised (and closes today) because cabinet has not yet informed SANRAL about which way it is going with e-tolls.

The people of Gauteng have spoken and signalled to government in no uncertain terms that e-tolls must go.

To waste time and energy in considering a tender that may never be awarded is counter productive. Even worse, if the tender is awarded and e-tolls is scrapped, it will leave a contractual burden for SANRAL.

Government needs to make its decision on e-tolls known as a matter of urgency before the tender proceeds any further.

DA seeks clarity over status of Moloto Road

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is calling on the Gauteng MEC for Roads and Transport, Jacob Mamabolo to provide clarity on whether or not the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) has published their intention to handover its section of Moloto Road to the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral).

The intention of GPG to hand over its section of Moloto Road to Sanral has to be gazetted so that Sanral has the legal authority to proceed with the upgrades of the road.

The DA will be writing to MEC Mamabolo, to give us more clarity on whether or not a notice has been published in the Government Gazette, stating GPG’s intention to hand over its portion of the Moloto Road to Sanral.

This dangerous road is known as the ‘road of death’ due to the high accident rate.

This delay means that the loss of life on this road will continue. Much needed upgrades cannot be done by Sanral until the road is completely handed over to them. Currently the GPG does not have the expertise or the budget to do the much-needed upgrades on this road.

Last year, after pressure from the DA, MEC Mamabolo announced that Gauteng will be handing over the Gauteng section of Moloto Road to Sanral.

The DA will continue to put pressure on the MEC to ensure that GPG hands over Moloto Road to Sanral, so that the upgrades to the road can begin as a matter of urgency.

DA pressure forces GPG to hand over Moloto Road to Sanral for upgrades and maintenance

The Gauteng portion of Moloto will finally be handed over to the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) at the end of the month.

This comes after the DA in Gauteng put pressure on the MEC for Roads and Transport, Jacob Mamabolo to hand over the Gauteng portion of the road.

The Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport does not have the capacity nor the budget to ensure that this road is upgraded.

Sanral plans to upgrade Moloto Road from a single lane road to a double lane road.

This road runs through the Gauteng, Mpumalanga and Limpopo provinces.

Mpumalanga and Limpopo have already handed over their stretches of road to Sanral for the upgrades.

This road has a high accident rate especially over Easter and Christmas time.

Currently this road does not have any street lights and has no clear road signs.

I will continue to monitor the progress of the upgrade of this road as we cannot afford to have any more lives lost on this road.

Sanral e-toll collection down to R687.7 million, shows system must be scrapped

The fact that the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) has only managed to collect R687.7 million for the 2018/2019 financial year compared to the previous year when they were able to collect R1.87 billion once again shows that e-tolls are not working and should be scrapped.

This information was revealed in Sanral’s integrated annual report, which also indicated that the entity raised an impairment of R10.04 bullion on its total e-toll trade.

Motorists in Gauteng have refused to pay for e-tolls since it was implemented in 2013.

It is high-time that a solution is found to e-tolls in Gauteng.

At the end of August, the National Minister of Transport was supposed to make an announcement regarding e-tolls but instead asked for extra time to consult with all stakeholders on the matter.

A month has now passed, and we are still waiting to hear what the solution to e-tolls will be.

The DA has been against the implementation of e-tolls as it is an unfair tax burden on our residents who are struggling to make ends meet.

If no solution is found to e-tolls, then Sanral will see a further decrease in the collection of e-toll debt.

e-Tolls must be scrapped sooner rather than later.

The DA will continue to put pressure on Premier David Makhura to lodge an intergovernmental dispute on e-tolls and instead use the fuel levy to replace e-tolls and not bail out State Owned Enterprises (SOEs)

Gauteng refuses to transfer Moloto Road to Sanral, puts upgrades 5 years behind

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is disappointed to learn that the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) has refused to hand over Moloto Road to the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) for much needed upgrades.

This was revealed to me during a recent Roads and Transport Committee meeting, where Sanral presented its plans to upgrade Moloto Road from a single lane road to a double lane road.

This road does not have any street lights and has no clear road signs.

The decision to transfer Moloto Road to Sanral was taken by National government.

Mpumalanga and Limpopo have already handed their sections of the road over to Sanral and the design phase for these sections have already been concluded. Tenders for construction will be advertised this year and construction will start next year.

During the question and answer session, Sanral indicated that Gauteng part of Moloto road has only progressed 10% in the design phase and this would put the upgrade of the road five years behind the Mpumalanga and Limpopo sections.

The Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport does not have the capacity or the budget to ensure that this road is upgraded.

By not handing over the Gauteng section of the road to Sanral, GPG is showing that it cares little about the lives of the residents in Gauteng.

How many more lives must be lost before GPG will act?

The DA will ask that the Gauteng section of the road be transferred to Sanral as a matter of urgency, as this road has a high accident rate especially over Easter and Christmas time.

PRASA funding to pay SANRAL debt highlights ANC inefficiency

Reports in this weekend’s City Press indicating that funds will be cut from struggling Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) to bail out the failing e-toll system once again highlights the fact that the ANC does not care about the plight of our people, nor do they have the aptitude to fix the country’s dilapidated transport systems.

Millions of commuters use rail to get to and from work and school.

Trains are frequently late, over-crowded, plagued with technical issues and are hotspots of crime.

The Bill that seeks to divert funding from one dysfunctional mode of transport to rectify the ill-conceived e-toll system clearly shows that there is no understanding of the hardships that commuters face on a daily basis.

The DA will continue to fight this unjust taxation of our people, but we will also not allow those who make use of our country’s ailing rail infrastructure to be disadvantaged by the poor choices of the ANC.

Gauteng has over a million cars registered and on the road, which means that there is revenue through motor vehicle renewal fees. Ring-fencing a portion of the fuel levy will aid in paying back SANRAL’s debt.

Robbing Peter to pay Paul is not how prudent financial management of the public purse is exercised.

E-tolls must go and our infrastructure must be upgraded to accommodate our people, but as it stands, neither of these two imperatives will be addressed.

ANC Gauteng refuses to hand over the Moloto Road at the expense of people‘s lives

The ANC-led Gauteng government’s consistent refusal to hand over its share of Moloto Road to SANRAL for upgrades is costing people their lives.

Limpopo and Mpumalanga have handed over their share of this road to SANRAL which has invested R3,7 billion in the project while the Gauteng share has not yet received any budget allocation.

The DA has learnt that the Gauteng government instructed SANRAL to stop with the design work last year until further notice because the road was not on their priority list and they had not yet budgeted for the project.

It is ironic that the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport is refusing to hand over Moloto Road while at the same time they don’t have the budget to maintain the road. In the 2018/19 financial year, the department returned R182 million to Treasury, yet this money could have been spent on upgrading the Moloto Road.

The former Gauteng MEC for Roads and Transport, Ishmael Vadi, told the Finance Committee during the budget hearings at the Gauteng Provincial Legislature that Gauteng won’t hand over their share of Moloto Road because it’s an asset for the province.

The ‘Road of Death’ cannot be an asset unless it has been properly upgraded and consistently maintained.

The Moloto Road is the most dangerous road in the country and has the highest number of crashes recorded. This road does not have any street lights; it’s a single lane road with no clear road signs. The residents of Kameeldrift East claim that their plea for this road to be upgraded has fallen on deaf ears and subsequently many lives have been lost due to how dangerous it is to cross the road.

The road is very congested and it’s difficult for pedestrians from Plot 174 and 175 informal settlements to commute to and from the area as many side roads are interlinked with this ‘Road of Death’. Furthermore, there is a massive development in the East of Tshwane which will add enormous pressure to this road.

The ANC Gauteng government must be held accountable for any loss of lives on the dangerous Moloto Road.

The DA will engage with the various role-players including, SANRAL, the Department of Roads and Transport and the City of Tshwane. We will also table questions in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature to ascertain when will this road upgraded and the time frame thereof.

We will continue to put pressure on both the new MEC for Roads and Transport, Jacob Mamabolo and Gauteng Premier, David Makhura to ensure that they prioritize the upgrading of this road as a matter of urgency.

#ScrapEtollsNow: Government making criminals out of honest citizens

Today I created a bonfire outside the South African National Road Agency’s ( Sanral) offices in Rooihuiskraal in Centurion with hundreds of Gauteng residents’ e-toll statements.

 

  • Please click here, here and here to download pictures.
  • Please click here for a soundbite by the DA Gauteng Premier Candidate, Solly Msimanga.

The DA received these e-toll statements from overburdened Gauteng residents who cannot afford to pay for e-tolls.

It is despicable that government is making criminals out of these hard-working, tax-paying citizens.

A week ago, Sanral announced that they will no longer be issuing summonses to people who have defaulted on their e-tolls. But this reprieve was short lived – Finance Minister, Tito Mboweni then said that Sanral must review this decision.

The decision by Sanral to no longer issue or pursue summonses to residents who have defaulted on their e-toll payments is an indication that this system is not working, has failed and should be scrapped immediately.

The failing ANC government is constantly speaking with a forked tongue. Premier David Makhura, during his State of the Province Address (Sopa) last year he indicated the e-tolls system is not working and this year he barely touched on what will happen to the e-tolling system in the province. MEC Panyaza Lesufi last year boldly told residents of Gauteng that e-tolls would be gone by May yet the Minister of Finance is of the opinion that e-tolls must stay.

It is high time that a firm decision is taken on e-tolls in Gauteng. Gauteng residents have been left in the dark and are confused about e-tolls.

In our open letter written to President Cyril Ramaphosa we have asked him to give us a definitive answer on what will happen to e-tolls within 7 days.

See full letter here.

The DA is the only party that has been speaking out against the implementation of e-tolls since it was first implemented in 2013. When we take office after the elections in May, we will lodge an intergovernmental dispute to have e-tolls scrapped. Should this fail we will go to court to have the e-tolls contract cancelled.

#ScrapeTollsNow: Sanral’s backtracking reeks of ANC electioneering

Note to editors: This is an updated version of the statement that was released earlier.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng has noted today’s announcement by the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) that they will with immediate effect suspend the process of pursuing e-Toll debts.

This move by the state-owned agency proves once again that the e-toll system in Gauteng is not working and has never worked.

It is clear that Sanral’s threats of issuing summonses for those who owe e-tolls and blacklisting residents who owed e-tolls fees would not hold water in a court of law.

The fact that some 40 days before the election, the ANC makes this announcement is blatant electioneering. It is clear that the ANC in Gauteng’s campaign has collapsed.

To ensure that this matter is placed first on the Sixth Parliament’s agenda, my colleague, the Shadow Minister of Transport, Manny De Freitas will write to the Minister of Transport.

e-Tolls is an unfair tax burden that was placed on the residents of Gauteng without proper consultation.

Since the inception of the e-tolling system the DA has consistently spoken out about the unfairness of this system, which is placing strain on our already financially overburdened residents due to the cost of living increasing over the years.

Despite a commission of inquiry established by Premier David Makhura, no effective action has been taken by the Premier against e-Tolls.

Last year, he indicated that e-Tolls would be gone. Unfortunately, they are still with us. This is yet another broken promise.

Indeed there still remain more questions than answers.

The DA is the only party that is serious about scrapping e-Tolls. During our first 100 days in office we will launch an intergovernmental dispute against e-Tolls.