Sanral loses Cape tolls case
THE South African National Roads Agency’s (Sanral) plan to toll roads in the Cape Winelands was dealt a heavy blow on Wednesday when a court halted it.
But Sanral downplayed the ruling that ordered it to restart the tolls process and review plans for the N1 and N2 highways.
It was a “technical” one‚ Sanral said and it would not affect its financial position.
The agency argued in court that its funding was limited to two sources: appropriations by parliament and tolls. It said appropriations were insufficient to fund highway upgrades when factoring in its other commitments‚ and that the fuel levy was not an option.
“If Sanral is not allowed to proceed with the project now the province‚ the city and their constituents will not have the upgrades for at least the next 20 years‚ if at all‚” Sanral spokesman Vusi Mona said.
“There is just no money from the Treasury to fund the project. The only option is to have it operated by a concessionaire who will finance the cost of upgrading and expanding the road through equity and borrowings‚ which have to be repaid through tolls‚” Mona said.
The High Court in Cape Town said if Sanral wanted to proceed with the tolls project it had to conduct a process that was supported by proper public participation‚ meaning that the tender for the tolling project awarded to Protea Parkways Consortium would also be set aside.
Judges Ashley BinnsWard and Nolwazi Boqwana also set aside former transport minister Jeff Radebe’s decision in 2008 to declare sections of the N1 and N2 toll roads.
The City of Cape Town took Sanral to court and accused it of not following due process when it decided to toll the route. It argued that drivers there would pay toll tariffs nearly three times higher than those in Gauteng‚ should the plan proceed.
Mona said Sanral was disappointed by the judgment and was weighing its legal options. He said other than reputational risk‚ the judgment would not affect its finances or future bond auctions.
“The N1-N2 Winelands project is envisaged to be a concessioned project‚ which means it is financed and operated by the concessionaire. The decision was a technical one and not on the principle of tolling, he said.
“The Constitutional Court has ruled that decisions on funding lie with government and not with the judiciary.”
Nedbank’s head of debt capital markets‚ Bruce Stewart‚ on Wednesday said it was too early to say what effect the judgment would have on Sanral’s bond auction.
The Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance (Outa) said “the judgment sheds light on the incorrect and appalling procedures implemented by Sanral‚ who have ignored the very people expected to pay the unjust tolls”. — BDLive