Paper presented at the 32nd Annual Southern African Transport Conference 8-11 July 2013 "Transport and Sustainable Infrastructure", CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa.
Traffic congestion remains an issue of major concern for all South Africans and is a problem
that requires resolution should we not wish to add to our travel time each year. This paper
explores tolling as a possible solution - with money generated from tolling utilised for road
maintenance and upgrades. More importantly, effective and intelligent tolling can shape
driver behaviour and benefit logistics and supply chain management immensely. Whilst this
perspective remains largely unpopular and emotionally charged, the author is of the firm
belief that if we can achieve the shift towards efficient public transport and/or higher density
private passenger transport (i.e. sharing), congestion can be avoided and the life of the
Gauteng Freeway system can be extended. If not, more than 90% of freeway usage in
Gauteng will remain by passenger vehicles that use the national infrastructure investment
without paying, only to win a few minutes of convenience whilst they hamper the economy.
