How much it costs to drive from Johannesburg to Durban on R20 per litre

South African fuel prices have been rising rapidly during 2021, bashing through the R20-per-litre barrier in December.

Inland consumers now pay R20.29 per litre of Petrol 95, which is R5.83 (40%) higher than at the same time in 2020.

This means fuel prices are now one of the main concerns when planning a road trip, as they can have a big impact on your holiday budget.

Below, we take a hypothetical trip between Johannesburg and Durban to see what you can expect to spend on petrol.

The route

The popular N3 corridor between Johannesburg and Durban is just under 570km long, making a round trip roughly 1,140km.

In Gauteng, you will pass through four e-tolls between the Buccleuch interchange – our trip’s starting point – and the province’s border.

Throughout the entire trip, you will also encounter five toll gates.

This means you will have to pay eight e-tolls and 10 “normal” tolls on your way to and from Durban via the N3.

The car

To determine how much traveling costs have increased compared to February this year, we are driving the VW Polo Vivo 1.4 Trendline on our holiday trip.

The hatchback’s 1.4-litre, naturally-aspirated petrol engine generates 55kW and 130Nm – and returns a relatively low combined fuel consumption of 5.7l/100km.

For our 1,140km round trip, this equates to roughly 65 litres of Petrol 95 that will be used.

The fees

The current toll gate tariffs for the Johannesburg-Durban route as listed on the Sanral website are as follows:

• De Hoek – R53.00 
• Wilge – R73.00
• Tugela – R78.00
• Mooi – R55.00
• Marianhill – R13.00

The GFIP e-toll tariffs between Buccleuch and the Gauteng border for a registered e-toll user traveling during weekdays are as follows:

• One-way – R11.88
• Return trip – R23.76

For unregistered e-toll users, these prices will double.

Inland 95 petrol pricing, as stated on the Automobile Association website, is R20.29 per litre.

The price

Detailed in the table below are the total costs for fuel and tolls for a round trip between Johannesburg and Durban via the N3 in a VW Polo Vivo 1.4 Trendline.

Compared to February, total traveling costs are up by R302 – largely due to the significant increase in petrol prices.