Following the public outcry about the high cost of planned new toll roads, transport minister Sibusiso Ndebele has called a halt to any future plans by the South African National Roads Agency Ltd (Sanral) for tolling of roads in the country.
This includes the planned Phase 2 of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Plan (GFIP), as well as projects in the Cape Winelands and on the Wild Coast. Meanwhile, reports have stated that with the first phase of the GFIP almost complete, tolling is scheduled to begin in February 2012 after being delayed twice.
But, according to Mike Schüssler, economist at Economists.co.za, it is still not 100% certain when tolling will begin in Gauteng. The Ministry of Transport has also indicated that a Cabinet-appointed Ministerial Task Team consisting of the ministers of transport and finance will look at alternative funding solutions for road infrastructure development.
Concurrently, planned public consultative processes will collect alternative views from the public on the best possible model of financing the R20 billion debt incurred for the construction of GFIP Phase 1. Schüssler suggested that a likely alternative funding model could include using fuel tax to fund new roads and road maintenance or possibly a ring-fenced fuel levy.
He disagreed with those in the agricultural sector who believed that the only long-term solution to the transport problem would be to revive large-scale rail transport for agricultural goods. “We do need to invest in rail but rail transport is not an option in all cases. The rail line does not run past every farm and while bulk commodities can be transported by rail, it does not make sense to transport fresh produce such as milk and vegetables by rail. Times have changed and various sectors, like agriculture, will never again be able to rely only on rail transport. So yes, we need to invest in rail infrastructure but we also need to invest in road infrastructure.” – Denene Erasmus
