E-Tolls: what are we going to sign up for?

 

The E-Tag debate in South Africa is heating up, specifically within Gauteng where the toll-roads are to be set up, with many road users saying that they will refuse to register for the system as it is unfair for many reasons.

 

The terms set by SANRAL (The South African National Roads Agency Limited) are vague in most places and highlights some of the biggest issues in others. For instance, one clause in the terms and conditions says that SANRAL will have the right to request personal information from any institution where the user has an account. While SANRAL have stated that this privilege will not be abused, many users believe this to be an invasion of their privacy.

 

SANRAL’s terms also state that their ‘information is correct unless proven otherwise’. This means that any extra costs added onto your account due to a system error, technical fault or any other error, must be disputed and will not be discounted until proven to be incorrect. There are also no definitions as to how the extra fees (such as the R5 for mailed documents and 20c per SMS) will be reimbursed once the dispute has been settled.

 

The Gauteng government claims that this procedure will definitely roll-out, as the benefits outweigh the downfalls. The fees taken will be used to upgrade infrastructure, and it is believed by these authorities that it is only fair that the road users should be the one’s to pay for the upgrades. However, there is then a show of favoritism, as minibus taxis are exempt from the tolls. The reason given to the public for this exemption is to ‘show the commitment of the city to the improvement of public transport’, and that road users would now be more encouraged to make use of alternate forms of transport.

 

One of the biggest debates over the cost of this tolling system and its incurred costs to SANRAL is that the deficit should be made up through the increase in petrol price over the course set out by the Agency. Placing these road taxes on users adds on to already high fuel, road and personal tax already imposed on the public.

 

Road users already have responsibilities when filing for tax returns. Individuals who travel for work purposes must make use of detailed logbooks, or the alternative, much easier and more accurate electronic GPS logbooks offered (such as the ones offered by Little Logbook).

 

Little Logbook utilizes GPS technology in conjunction with Google Maps that tracks the vehicles movement and logs it inside of its secure server. The device is fully SARS-compliant and can be used more permanently and reliably than paper logbooks. Visit the Little Logbook website for more information on how you can benefit from using one of these GPS logbooks.