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Johannesburg - The 60% discount on past e-toll debt is a farce and doesn't change anything, as far the Opposition To Urban Tolling Alliance (Outa) is concerned.
Road users on the Gauteng freeway network are from November 2 eligible for a 60% reduction of their historic e-toll debt in arrears, the SA National Roads Agency (Sanral) said on Sunday.
This once-off discount applies to all unpaid e-tolls levied on Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) roads from December 3 2013 up to and including August 31 2015.
"We always said that applying extortionist and punitive tariffs was never going to be an effective tactic for Sanral to apply in the first place. The majority of the motoring public have rejected the scheme, not because of the tariffs, but because the scheme is unjust and irrational. If the Gauteng motorists were sold on the scheme in the first place, they would have gone out and fitted e-tags to enjoy the discounted rate from the start," Outa responded on Sunday in reaction to the Sanral statement.
"Furthermore, the reduced monthly cap doesn't change the exorbitant costs of collection, which comes in at over R1bn per annum and enriches foreign companies."
Outa believes a few people may succumb to what it calls Sanral's "new carrot".
"It will not push their current low 25% compliance levels to much more than 40%, which was where the was in mid-2014 and at those levels, the scheme remains a massive failure as a user pays mechanism," said Outa.
Outa said it has always maintained that the e-toll scheme was introduced unlawfully and that the public have every right not to pay tolls for the use of Gauteng's freeways.
Furthermore, Outa have now launched its new "e-Toll Defensive Umbrella" campaign, aimed at providing legal support for all of its contributing members, in the event they are summonsed for non-payment of e-toll fees.
