Highway to hell

Highway to hell

Accidents are no longer the only perils motorists will have to face when taking the highway. New and unexpected costs are sure to drive citizens away from national roads as they threaten to bite a bigger chunk out of motorists` wallets.

As some long-dreaded, money-sucking transport projects rear their ugly heads, South Africans will have to have to start budgeting to get from point A to B, while government laughs all the way to the bank.

FREE FLOW

E-tolling is arguably the Godzilla of transport development. Drivers don`t know whether to be terrified of it because they don`t know exactly what it wants and what it will do to them, or to be in awe of it because it`s so fascinating.

E-tolling forms part of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) and is expected to roll out in the first half of this year. The 185km of new toll infrastructure will see the N1 to Pretoria, Johannesburg ring roads and the R21 to Pretoria, become electronic tolling zones.

It is an open road, multi-lane toll system that allows for tolls to be charged without drivers having to stop. There are no physical booths.

"Overhead gantries will be fitted with the toll collection equipment that will recognise the electronic transponder (e-tag) in a vehicle, the toll will be deducted from a user`s registered e-toll account and they will be able to travel without any disruption," says the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral).

Of a total of 42 planned toll gantries, 28 have been erected so far.

The Department of Transport says motorists will pay via a prepaid or a guaranteed post-paid account.

The prepaid account will work the same as a cellphone or electricity prepaid account, and will be available to any road user - banked or unbanked.

The account-holder will also be able to top up the account through various points, such as kiosks, transport satellite centres, or through Internet banking and selected ATMs.

Although the department has revealed how billing for the electronic tolling stations will work, some questions still remain on whether it will have the capacity to deal with unregistered vehicles, non-payment by motorists and fraudulent number plates.

COST MYSTERY

The biggest question, though, is how much all of this will cost a commuter.

The tariff structure for e-tolling has not yet been finalised, according to Sanral.

This is despite estimates from official sources that e-tolling could cost the average person between R700 and R1 000 a month, if they pass two tolls, in each direction, per day.

Senior project manager for the GFIP Alex van Niekerk says: "There are too many variables that can influence the cost of toll for a specific person (where one enters and exits the road, what time of day, what type of vehicle, does the vehicle have an e-tag) and it is, therefore, very difficult to estimate costs until the tariff and discount structure have been announced."

He adds that the toll fees will pay back the loans that were used to pay for the development of the infrastructure upgrades, and the operations and maintenance costs of the road.

Sources close to the process have admitted the current expenditure would not have been necessary had government upgraded highways as the need arose a few years ago.

However, collected toll fees are expected to inject about R29 billion into the economy, says Sanral.

ANSWERS PLEASE

Apart from the high cost that many South Africans will not be able to afford, there are still many questions around e-tolling that aren`t being answered.

What happens when the system doesn`t work properly (and this is likely to happen at some point) and people get charged more than they`re supposed to? Can chips be stolen off cars and used by another person? Why couldn`t government have put in a better public transport system instead? What happens when drivers just avoid e-tolling highways and clog up back roads?

And again, how much exactly will e-tolling cost?

FEEDING CORRUPTION

The Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (Aarto) Act is another project that has been the subject of much contention.

Aarto, being the Loch Ness monster that not everyone believes actually exists, is set to be introduced on a national basis from 1 April.

Unsuccessful pilot projects have been run in the municipalities of Tshwane and Johannesburg. It will see the allocation of demerit points to traffic law infringers.

All drivers have 12 points to start with, and lose a certain amount of them depending on the severity of the offence. This could eventually lead to the suspension of one`s licence. However, points can also be earned through good behaviour.

While some welcome the chance to punish traffic offenders and curb the loss of lives in accidents, others foresee enhanced corruption since drivers will be willing to pay more in bribes to underhanded officials so as not to get their licences suspended.

Taxi, truck and professional drivers have already marched in protest against the act, since they predict situations where they could lose their licences and thus their jobs, because their employer`s vehicle may not be roadworthy.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

One "smart" development by the transport department for motorists and vehicle owners is the Intelligent Number Plates (INP) project.

The only problem is that the intelligent element happens to be the Cheshire cat that keeps disappearing for no good reason.

The electronic number plate system will have RFID tags that contain unique identification codes programmed into a 2D bar code that traffic authorities will be able to scan.

Number plate manufacturers will also have to be accredited and the aluminium plates will be bolted onto vehicles with tamper-proof screws to prevent fraud.

"The new system is part of a smart crime-fighting initiative aimed at putting an end to the duplication of number plates frequently used in motor vehicle theft and other illegal practices," says the department.

It has put forward more than one reason for the project`s failure to launch for the umpteenth time.

The first was that the technology proposed for the INP project was problematic and did not meet the department`s standards.

The second reason was that there was in fact a set of technologies that was suitable for the project, but since it all came from one company, competition was an issue.

And these are the reasons for the unintelligent aluminium plates that have been rolled out in the meantime. Government says that for now motorists won`t have to change their existing plates for these. However, technical member of the Number Plates Association of SA, David Pretorius, says the only legal plate as of August will be the aluminium one.

The system had several deadlines, the most recent one being October last year, but the department now says the intelligent aspect will be rolled out over a period of 24 months. The tricky question that the department has so far failed to answer is when the 24-month period will actually begin.

One plus is that when the project is finally rolled out, a microchip will be inserted into the bottom of the existing aluminium plate, so citizens don`t have to replace their plates yet again.

To pacify motorists in the meantime, the department has placed a watermark on the aluminium plates for safety and authenticity. And there`s that lingering, disembodied smile to let drivers know hi-tech security hasn`t completely abandoned them.

THERE`S MORE

If these three hurdles aren`t enough, there`s still the recently implemented carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions tax on vehicles, which sees buyers of new cars forking out R75 for each gram per kilogram of CO2 emitted above 120g/km.

That translates into an estimated R1 500 more on the purchase price of a small passenger car, and as much as R20 000 on a petrol-guzzling 4X4.

With electric cars not yet being a viable alternative in SA (ask Eskom), drivers have no option but to fork out the green stuff. Ironically, it is widely known that there are no actual carbon-reducing projects that government is driving, so emission taxes are destined to end up in the state`s coffers.

NOT ENOUGH

Corruption and mismanagement at the Road Traffic Management Corporation also removes any comfort in knowing the looming projects will at least be handled properly and deployed smoothly.

One of the confirmed allegations against it is the irregular usage of R300 million in electronic National Traffic Information System transaction fees.

Also regarding eNatis is the alleged unlawful renewal of the contract with the company managing it, namely Tasima.

At the price of bribery, corruption, added costs, suspended licences, and new number plates for the 2011 driver in SA, the pros of potentially fewer accidents, better roads, more cautious drivers and the distant promise of intelligence just might not be enough.

The best-placed faith then would be in government`s ability to further delay all these projects for yet another year.