E-toll review in high court set for 26 November 2012

SANRAL’s plan to subject the citizens of South Africa to an elaborate and expensive e-tolling process to pay for the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) in April 2012, was met with fierce opposition by the public. The Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance (OUTA), an alliance of business and public participants was successful in halting the launch of e-tolling in Gauteng on 28th April, just days before its planned launch on April 30, pending a full review of the decision to toll these routes.

The merits of OUTA’s case is structured around the unreasonableness of the high costs involved, along with the irrationality of the plan combined with a number of legislative and procedural transgressions by SANRAL and the government departments of Transport and Environmental Affairs. All affidavits pertaining to the case can be read and downloaded from the OUTA website.

Despite the fact that Treasury is appealing the interdict in the Constitutional Court on 15th August 2012, weather the appeal finds in favour of SANRAL, this may only allow the interdict to be set aside and for tollig to commence, until such time as the review is heard in November. It is ultimately this review of SANRAL’s plan to toll the GFIP which is the main matter which OUTA requires to be heard in the High Court, following its successful temporary interdict of e-tolling in April earlier this year.

OUTA have filed their supplementary affidavit (Part B of the application) in mid-July and now awaits the respondents answering affidavits to be served by 17th September 2012, where after OUTA will produce its replying affidavit by 1 October, in time for the heads of argument to be filed in the high court by 22 October, giving the judge time to prepare for the hearing, which will commence on 26th November 2012.

OUTA still requires considerable funding for the court battle and urges citizens and businesses in South Africa to participate by contributing toward the legal costs of this case, the details of which are posted on the OUTA website.