gauteng


Ndbele: ‘Freeways are not free’

Thursday, August 18, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

If the public wants freeways then it has to pay for them, Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele said on Thursday.

The Ben Schoeman highway between Johannesburg and Pretoria.

“If there is an outcry and people say they won’t pay tolls, then we can’t put the freeway in,” he said at a press conference in Cape Town on Thursday.

“Freeways are not free.”

Ndebele said the “user-pay principle” was accepted throughout the world, but in South Africa people were willingly prepared to pay only in the telecommunications sector.

“In the areas of electricity, water and transport, which improve their lives, such willingness is lacking,” he said.

Cabinet approved revised tariffs for the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project earlier in August.

The rates are 24 cents a kilometre for motorcycles, 40c/km for light motor vehicles and 200c/km for longer vehicles. Qualifying taxis and commuter buses are exempt.

Ndebele said it was time to repay the R20bn loaned to upgrade the Ben Schoeman highway between Johannesburg and Pretoria.

“It has paid for quite a good infrastructure. It is a done deal. That horse has bolted. Now we have to pay for it.”

Ndebele said that after years of underspending, the government was making “steady progress” towards ensuring that rail was the backbone of South Africa’s public transport system.

“As of 1 April 2011, government is spending R30.2bn over the next three years for rail upgrades across the country, with R19.5bn earmarked for capital spending to upgrade existing infrastructure, signalling systems and rolling stock,” Ndebele said.

The Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) was embarking on “a bold programme” to invest in new rail rolling stock worth an estimated R100bn over 18 years.

This would significantly improve the country’s commuter rail transport, Ndebele said.

He said eThekwini was about to complete its full rapid transport plan, which included roads and rail.

Rustenburg too had finalised operational planning and officially launched the Rustenburg Rapid Transport Project on July 21.

Both Tshwane and Polokwane were reviewing their operational plans, he said.

The Gautrain was also proving to be a success. About 3 million passengers had already used the train between Sandton and the airport since its launch in June 2010.

The final stage of the train to Park Station, in Johannesburg, would be ready by the end of November.

Credit to: Fin24

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Toll fees suspended

Wednesday, February 23, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

Tariffs Gazetted for the tolling of Gauteng highways will be suspended until further notice, Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele said on Tuesday.

A panel of experts would be appointed to explore options in order to reduce the toll burden on road users, he told reporters in Kempton Park.

It comes after a meeting with Gauteng Premier Nomvula Mokonyane.

A panel of experts, made up of representatives from the transport department, the SA National Roads Agency Limited and the Gauteng government, will also review the financial model on which the R20bn transaction was based.

“The premier and I agree on the principle of tolling. Government reiterates its commitment to fully honouring the terms of the loan agreement for this transaction,” said Ndebele.

“We will be engaging with the investors to keep them in the loop and assure them that we remain fully committed to the repayment of the R20bn loan.”

Mokonyane said it would be unfair to say that government took long before re-acting to concerns.

A structured process of consultation and one for input from the public on the cost structure and financial model will soon be announced.

“South Africans can be best assured that government is doing everything possible to resolve this matter in a manner that will be in the best interest of the commuter, road user and the state for future development and management of our road infrastructure in the country,” Mokonyane said.

Consultations would at most take a month, before the rolling out of the toll system in June.

“We need to give commuters options,” she said.

Tempers flared after it was announced that in June it will cost 66c/km at the 42 electronic toll gates erected on the N1, N3, N12, N17, R21 and R24.

The tolls cover a distance of about 185km.

Concern was raised by businesses, labour and political parties, about the effect toll fees will have on the poor, the economy and alternative routes.

Credit to: News24 and Sapa

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Billing: ANC to meet with Gauteng mayors

Wednesday, February 2, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

The ANC in Gauteng will meet the province’s seven mayors on Thursday to discuss the widely-publicised billing crisis and service delivery complaints, a spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday.

“They will meet on Thursday,” ANC Gauteng spokesperson Dumisa Ntuli said.

The meeting, ahead of the first round of voter registration for the forthcoming local government elections, will take place in Johannesburg.

Last week Johannesburg Mayor Amos Masondo said there was “no crisis” in billing for rates and utilities in the country’s economic hub.

However, many of the city’s customers disagree, after receiving exorbitant bills that do not reflect true consumption, and unfair disconnections.

Ntuli said the ANC agreed there was no crisis because they have a 95% “pay rate”, with only around five percent not paying.

But they agree that there are “a few glitches in the system” where officials are not doing their job.

“For example, the system will tell you if a person has been wrongly billed and it must be investigated, but the officials continue to bill the people. So, it’s a man-made problem, not a system problem and the leadership will deal with that.”

Action would be taken against offending officials.

“A crisis is something of an intensive propensity, of great proportionality like a tsunami that you cannot resolve. But this one can be resolved,” he said.

Credit to: Sapa and News 24

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Billions needed to fix flood damage

Thursday, January 20, 2011 1 Comment by Zelda

Billions of rands will be needed to fix infrastructure damaged during recent heavy flooding in Gauteng, the province said on Wednesday.

“There was lots of damage to infrastructure… where it was millions worth it’s now billions rather,” Government and Housing MEC Humphrey Mmemezi told reporters in Ivory Park, east of Johannesburg.

Mmemezi said funding for repairs would be taken from disaster management, although money might also be taken from other government projects.

“God cannot be predicted… that’s why we have disaster management in place. Other projects will be compromised to assist the needy,” he said.

Mmemezi said the department was not able to address all damages immediately and they would prioritise.

He said it was also prioritising housing for people who had shacks along the floodline, by placing those most in need on the housing projects list.

“We’re looking at those who’ve been there for a long time,” Mmemezi said, adding that people taking a chance would be rooted out.

Mmemezi, and Health and Development MEC Ntombi Mekgwe spent Wednesday visiting areas affected by floods in the province.

Credit to: Sapa and News 24

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Gauteng: Flood warning + tips

Friday, January 14, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

Johannesburg was preparing for possible flooding on Friday, the city’s emergency services said.

“The weather service has issued a prediction alert of between 60-80% chance of rainfall in the Highveld for Friday… that includes Johannesburg,” spokesperson Percy Morokane said in a statement.

The city had set up a joint operations centre and a flood management task team to reduce the risk of any major flood disasters.

Awareness programmes had been set up throughout the city, particularly in flood-prone areas.

These included Klipspruit, Eldorado South, Dube, Mofolo, Meadowlands, Braamfischerville, Orange Farm, Lenasia South, Florida Lake, Rivonia and Witkoppen roads in Sunninghill, Stjwetla informal settlement along the Jukskei River, London Road in Alexandra and the Kaalrivier in Ivory Park.

Ahead of the heavy downpour, the Tshwane municipality issued some flooding tips.

- Do not to walk, swim or drive through flooded areas. Avoid low bridges;
- If a car stalls in a flooded area, do not stay in it;
- Fill all ditches with mud, grass or gravel;
- Make sure your house entrance is higher than the surrounding ground;
- Store food and valuables on a higher level like shelves, tables and chairs;
- Fill containers with clean water in case regular supplies are contaminated;
- Prepare an emergency kit with essential belongings in the event of an evacuation;
- Remain in contact with neighbours and take turns to monitor the water level;
- Keep the radio on and listen to warnings.

Residents should also keep emergency numbers safe.

- Tshwane Emergency Services 012 358 6300/6400,
- 24 hour call centre 012 358 2111, emergency 10177,
- Metro police 012 358 7095/6,
- SAPF 10111.

Credit to: Sapa and News24

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Business owners uncertain about effect of new toll system

Monday, December 6, 2010 No Comments by Zelda

Business owners and logistics operators are still in the dark about the consequences of the proposed toll system in and around Gauteng and Pretoria, but the general consensus is that it will have a significant effect on how businesses operate.

Unofficially some operators are estimating this could add as much as 70c/km driven, but in reality they just do not know.

The system is due to come into effect in June next year.

More than 40 electronic toll gates will be erected on the province’s major freeways, including the N1, N3 and R21.

The tariffs have yet to be finalised.

The South African National Roads Agency Limited had indicated as early as 2007 that the new toll systems would add another 50c/km to motorists but the agency was still in the process of finalising tariffs.

Tony Adams, the national operations manager at transport and logistics operator Super Group, said they were still researching the effect that the tolling would have on their operations and would not commit to a figure but described it as “a big cost factor” that they were grappling with which could hit them hard, particularly on the Johannesburg-Pretoria routes.

Ian Lourens, chief executive of JSE-listed logistics group OneLogix Group, was reluctant to discuss the issue saying that there was still a lot of uncertainty around how the system would be implemented and pointing out that tolling could be charged at different rates. There was also the possibility of discounts for volume operators.

Marcel Klaassen, head of sales for small business at FNB Commercial said: “General economics would suggest that anything that makes service delivery more expensive or impractical is considered a hindrance to small-business growth.”

Klaassen pointed out that this could have a significant effect on the way goods are moved around Gauteng.

This included the costs being transferred on to the consumer as small businesses strived to ward off margin erosion and a potential decrease in service levels with businesses either eliminating free delivery or implementing longer delivery lead times.

He added that this could also see businesses taking a closer look at shared transport and shipping as well as outsourcing of the services.

Chris Delport, regional general manager for small business funder GroFin’s operations in South Africa, said: “Of course such a toll road will have a negative effect on business. It increases the cost of transport, thus the overheads of a business, which means the price of your commodity has to increase accordingly. This will result in the client paying more for the same product or service and could potentially have a negative effect on the business becoming uncompetitive.”

Credit to: News24

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