Responding to a Parliamentary question on whether emergency vehicles would be exempt from paying the toll fees on the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP), Ndebele said the route followed depended on whether the vehicle was privately owned or owned by the local government. Tolling on the upgraded Gauteng highways would start on April 30.
Historically, emergency vehicles delivering a service on tolled freeways applied for toll authority cards. However, Ndebele said that owing to previous misuse by some cardholders, a different approach for the GFIP was required. He explained that the user of a privately owned emergency vehicle could, through a specific process requiring approval by the specific government entity, be credited for transactions that were made for official purposes. However, the vehicle must be fitted with an e-tag to manage this process and prevent fraud from taking place. Local government service delivery vehicles would not be exempt from paying tolls, he added. Currently, Engineering News reports, the South African Police Services, the South African National Defence Force and certain qualifying public transport operators were exempt from paying tolls.
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