Presenting the medium-term budget policy statement (MTBPS), Gauteng MEC for Finance Jacob Mamabolo revealed that the province has committed to proposing a “comprehensive plan” to national government this December that will detail the province’s method for settling its outstanding e-toll debt “while ensuring the sustainability of essential social services.”
This is one of the key factors that have delayed the shutting down of the controversial tolling scheme over the past year.
During the 2022 national MTBPS, finance minister Enoch Godongwana announced that the Gauteng provincial government and national government agreed to contribute 30% and 70%, respectively, to service the National Roads Agency’s (Sanral) debt and interest obligations, which includes e-tolls, after which the gantries will be decommissioned.
However, a year after this announcement e-tolls are still billing motorists daily and the toll payment collections contract has since been extended into December 2023.
Following an official parliamentary inquiry into the current state of e-tolls, minister Godongwana confirmed that the main factors standing in the way of turning off the gantries are the absence of a binding agreement between the Gauteng and national governments on the province’s financial commitments to pay off its share of the debt, its contribution to the maintenance backlog, and the administrative costs associated with the recovery of toll payments from defaulting users.
Therefore, should the Gauteng government address these concerns in December’s proposal, e-tolls could soon be repurposed for security, crime prevention, and road-related law enforcement services, according to Mamabolo.
“Gauteng’s fiscal landscape is undergoing strategic shifts, including efforts to settle the e-toll debt,” said Mamabolo.
“We reaffirm our longstanding commitment to pay the debt, including augmenting our provincial revenue without burdening the equitable share, especially priorities for social services such as education, health, and social welfare.”
61 “smart” DLTCs coming to Gauteng
Another initiative announced by Mamabolo in the MTBPS is the expansion of “smart” driver’s licence testing centres (DLTC) to 65 licensing sites across Ekurhuleni, Johannesburg, Sedibeng, Tshwane, and the West Rand in an effort to enhance service delivery in Gauteng.
Currently, the smart DLTCs are only available at four locations, including the Eco Park DLTC in Tshwane, the Waterfall Park DLTC in Joburg, and the Centurion and Midrand Gautrain stations.
These DLTCs use “smart technologies” to halve the time it takes for motorists to complete the process of renewing their driver’s licence cards and provide full online and cashless services, making it quicker and more convenient for customers to perform these vital services.
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