End to Gauteng motorist tolling system: Opposition accuses premier of shifting goalposts
The goal to end the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (e-tolls) was decided for in 2022, however government has missed its targets, promising yet another date to halt the project.
The Gauteng government has shifted the date for the demise of its e-toll gantries to before April 1.
The scrapping of the Gauteng freeway improvement project (e-tolls) infrastructure has been a long time coming since premier Panyaza Lesufi announced it and decisions to deactivate kept being pushed back.
The implementation of e-tolls began in 2013 and has for over 10 years been met with public retaliation and many motorists refusing to pay for the service of using the Gauteng highways.
Today, Gauteng Premier @Lesufi is delivering the SOPA. I expect a bold statement on e-tolls: ‘We promised to scrap e-tolls, and we delivered. No one in Gauteng should pay and no one should receive letters. Let’s leave the e-toll episode behind us.’🫣🤪 pic.twitter.com/yn7joeAZqx
— Dr. Gumani Tshimomola (@TshimomolaGK) February 19, 2024
We are still getting e-toll invoices, but it’s good to dream https://t.co/oMLrTP5tOB
— boogie (@MsMolobi) February 19, 2024
Lesufi however promised during the State of the Province Address (SOPA) on February 19 at Nasrec that e-tolls were set to stop by end March.
“From where we sit as the province, we remain confident that we should be able to end e-tolls by March.”
He said government acknowledged that in 2023, it had assured motorists that e-tolls would be a thing of the past.
Lesufi said this was indeed the case following a recent meeting looking to squash the gigantic infrastructure milking motorists for road use.
“I am happy to report that on January 26, a final meeting was held between Gauteng and the ministers of finance and transport respectively. We have been able to find common ground on issues related to user pay principle quantum of GFIP debt, quantum of sunken capex costs, capex obligation of the province, yearly maintenance costs of GFIP 1, repurposing of gantries, repayment of Sanral GFIP 1 debt and the future funding of GFIP 2 and 3.”
According to the premier’s office, talk about the official breakoff from the system has been ongoing behind closed doors for several years.
Lesufi’s spokesperson Vuyo Mhaga previously said Gauteng was working on ditching the system and organising a debt repayment strategy for the GFIP.
The announcement that the system would be deactivated was initially made in December 2022.
National Treasury and the National Revenue Fund agreed with Gauteng on the province’s commitment to settle its portion of the Sanral debt.
“The scrapping of e-tolls has been agreed upon by both national and the provincial governments.
“Currently, there is an engagement on the repayment modalities with the technical team, which continues to work hard, seeking the best solution to resolve the matter.
I am confident that the discussions are at the tail-end and the province is planning to use e-tolls to fight crime in Gauteng,” said Mhanga.
In response to the SOPA, DA Gauteng leader Solly Msimanga said: “Lesufi won’t offer any real solutions to rescue Gauteng.”
Msimanga said the address gave promises, however this would not bring any tangible results.
He said a clear indication was the shifting of goalposts when the e-tolls would be scrapped.
“The scrapping of e-tolls has been moved every year since the 2019 elections. Our residents are being forced into paying for a system they never wanted. We need a real solution to e-tolls immediately, not empty promises.
If the premier truly cared about the well-being of our residents, he would use today’s SOPA to admit that his government has failed to uplift the lives of our residents.”
🕒 Deadline missed again! Gauteng's e-Toll debt continues to grow as MEC Mamabolo fails to announce a payment plan. Time for transparency and action! #Etoll-Lies #GautengFinance 💰https://t.co/rHujCgtIiw pic.twitter.com/5aoHypPbu3
— Democratic Alliance Gauteng Legislature (@DA_GPL) February 12, 2024
“Our residents continue to be burdened by e-tolls. There is another general election ahead of us, and again, we have been promised that e-tolls have been scrapped, yet our road users are still being billed for this unwanted system.
A DA government will repurpose e-toll gantries to be used as a monitoring tool for traffic. Where the rules of the road are not followed, fines can be issued to those users, which in turn generates income in the province,” said Msimanga.
EFF Gauteng chairperson Nkululeko Dunga said the party rejected the 2024 SOPA delivered by the Lesufi.
“It is evident that this year’s SOPA resembles last year’s, characterised by a plethora of empty promises and a lack of a tangible and systematic plan to improve the lives of Gauteng province’s inhabitants.
“The 2024 SOPA was anticipated to provide an account of the promises made by the Premier last year, 2023. Lesufi continues to lie to the people of Gauteng. In his previous speech, he promised that e-tolls will be a thing of the past. Today, he speaks with a forked tongue, telling people of Gauteng that from where he sits, he remains confident that he should be able to end e-tolls.
“It is clear that Lesufi has no capacity to end e-tolls,” said Dunga.
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