Tolling paves the way for growth
Finance minister is in support of the user-pays funding model for new road infrastructure, writes Dumisani Maluleke
How infrastructure is funded in SA is more important now than ever before. This was one of the messages from the three ratings agencies that did not downgrade the country, but left the possibility open that the next six months might bring a different outcome. The agencies have indicated that what they’re watching, among others, is how politics influences policies, how stable state institutions are and how debt at these institutions is being brought under control. A significant part of all of this is where funding for future infrastructure projects will come from. Seen against this background, it is only reasonable to consider tolling as a funding method for road infrastructure. There is no money available in the national budget, while the need to upgrade existing roads and construct new roads is urgent and vital. Fighting tolling is really an undemocratic act, undermining the country’s economic growth possibilities. The logic of using toll money was prominently underlined by Finance...
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