The past year or so has undoubtedly been a difficult one for South Africa, both in terms of overcoming the problem faced by the global economy, and the increased levels of internal tension that has sprung up over issues such as the implementation of the road tax (E-tolls) and the number of strikes that have been springing up around the country, causing further instability in the local economy.
Let’s start by talking about what may in fact be the most impactful issue in terms of how it affects road users all over the country, the e-tolls. The general idea put forward by the government is that roads would be improved, and in turn, we, as a general public would have to pay to use the roads, until such a time that the entire loan had been paid back. This issue has been debated hotly over the last year, but was “advertised” by the government as far back as 2007 in the Government Gazette, and according to them, by doing this they had allowed the public the opportunity to oppose the bill. Now, 5 years later, bill is being revised because the future outcome of the entire plan seems to not work out as well as expected. The amount we are expected to pay on the tolls, compared with the sum of the loan will mean that the company that was given the contract would make a hefty profit, while road users suffer the brunt of price increases across the board. It is also still to be seen whether or not the state of the roads in the Gauteng region do actually improve as a result of this controversial initiative.
Now onto the issue of fuel hikes, which have now recorded near-record high levels, and do not show any promise of stabilizing, let alone decreasing any time soon. These hikes, no matter what they are caused by, are wreaking havoc on the South African economy. Every sector from food prices, transport, utilities such as electricity and tax, and the airline industry (as they are a significant consumer of fuel) will be affected. Things are only being made worse by the worsening state of the Rand in the world exchange, coupled with the drought in the US and fragile state of the European economy. Having to pay more for fuel will directly affect every road user, most of whom will undoubtedly have to adapt their driving habits until a solution to the crisis can be found.
The past few months have also seen a rise in tensions between worker’s unions and government, both local and national. Because of the state of the economy, and the fear that things might only get worse over the next few months, wage increase demands have become more common, and in cases where the unions don’t get their way, strikes and general chaos ensue. Right and wrong aside, these strikes have a tremendous effect on the rest of the country. Mineworker strikes mean higher trade prices, which means a weaker Rand, which means higher fuel prices. The cycle goes on forever, and consumers are left with the worst of the action, having to pay significantly more, and facing sometimes debilitating inconveniences, especially in the case of the early October transport strike, which left a lot to be desired in terms of service delivery and scheduling all over the country.
All of these factors have a huge impact on road users in many ways. Prices, convenience, stability, safety and trust all go out the window when issues of this magnitude show up. The next few months should act as a gauge of where the economy will be heading going into the new year, and if current trends are anything to go by, it may just get worse before it gets any better.
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