The South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) said on Monday that it was moving ahead with its e-toll registration process, having set up physical and online systems to facilitate e-tag registration for the Gauteng and national toll networks, despite ongoing uncertainty on how the Gauteng toll road project would be funded and a prevailing moratorium on future toll developments.

Addressing a briefing at its central operations centre alongside the N1 in Midrand, Gauteng Freeway Improvements Project (GFIP) project manager Alex van Niekerk said registration would open this week with various options having been created to facilitate account registration.

Sanral was advising users to register for an e-tag, linked to the vehicle's number plate, in order to qualify for discounts of up to 31%. Those who decide to register only their number plates with Sanral would only quality for time-of-use discounts.

E-tag packages are available at Checkers, Pick n Pay and Shoprite stores, as well as at a number of e-toll shops that have been set up across Gauteng. Sanral was also deploying mobile registration units and kiosks.

Van Niekerk acknowledged that the uptake was likely to be slow in light of the current uncertainties surrounding GFIP, but indicated that it was part of a phased implementation approach adopted by Sanral. This initial phase was expected to endure for three months.

Previously, Sanral has indicated that GFIP would go live in February, but Van Niekerk said that a final decision would now be announced by Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele. He also referred all enquiries regarding GFIP’s future funding structure, as well as South Africa’s future toll-road policies to the Department of Transport (DoT).

The DoT's Tiyani Rikhotso said that the e-tag registration was in line with Sanral's implementation plans for the first phase of GFIP, which had received Cabinet's approval in August. He indicated, too, that the department expected to receive feedback from Sanral, as the implementing agent, as to the actual date when the system would go live.

But the Democratic Alliance’s shadow deputy transport minister Manny de Freitas was taken aback by Sanral’s decision to move ahead with the registration process. He told Engineering News Online that he would advise motorists to refrain from registering until there was clarity on the funding of the motorways.

The DA was opposed to the toll system and had initiated a high-profile campaign to galvanise popular support against the implementation of open-road tolling (ORT) in Gauteng. There were also pockets of resistance to the scheme within government, the broader tripartite alliance, including within the African National Congress, particularly in the Gauteng province.

Further, members of the Southern African Rental and Leasing Association, which reportedly operate more than 450 000 vehicles, indicated recently that they would not register their vehicles for e-tags until their Gauteng tolling concerns had been addressed.

Nevertheless, Sanral indicated that the registration process was necessary in order to avoid a last-minute scramble ahead of any ORT implementation.

An “intensive” advertising campaign had also been launched and some 350 000 e-tags where available through the various online and physical outlets.

Those registering for an e-tag would have to pay R50 upfront, which would immediately reflect on their e-toll account. A call centre had been set up in Gauteng to field enquiries and to facilitate registration.

It was also possible to complete registration online and there was also an associated delivery system. Those registering online would pay R50 for the e-tag and an additional R60 to have the tag delivered.

The e-tags could be used on all national roads and Sanral envisaged the deployment of ORT lanes on existing toll routes, including the route from Johannesburg to Durban, as well as on the Bakwena Platinum toll road, which had already started rolling out a similar e-tag system. In fact, Bakwena e-tag’s could also be used on the national system, but users would need to register their accounts again on the Sanral system.

The Midrand facility would also become the transaction clearing house for all toll roads nationally, with various payment options available. These options range from prepayment and credit card payment solutions, through the generation of post-payment invoices, to 24-hour day passes for infrequent users.

Separate solutions were also on offer for fleet vehicle companies and car-rental companies.

Two companies, Q-Free and Kapsch, had won the contract to supply the physical cards, which would be manufactured in Europe, but maintained at a local facility. Van Niekerk was of the view that there would eventually be up to two-million e-tags in circulation.

The tag would be linked with a specific vehicle registration number, which would be verified using video cameras mounted on the toll gantries to avoid cloning. Meetings had also been held with the South African Police Service and Business Against Crime South Africa to discuss ways of using the information in support of law enforcement efforts.

The e-tag, which, in the case of motor cars, would be fitted on the windscreen behind the rear-view mirror, could be removed and assigned to a new registration number should the car owner dispose of the vehicle.

The Sanral website address is www.sanral.co.za, and the call centre number is 0800 726725, or 0800SANRAL.