Business response to Gauteng s e-tolling

Abstract

Companies have been faced with the decision of whether or not to comply with e-tolling since its inception in 2013. Media coverage on e-tolling has reflected many negative opinions, though these are mostly from private citizens. Despite the dismissal of legal challenges against e-tolling s implementation, collections of e-tolls remain well short of SANRAL s budgeted figures. Responsible decision makers within companies ultimately make the compliance decisions. This research aimed to investigate business compliance to e-tolling. Relevant academic literature was reviewed in order to form a basis for exploration of this topic. The constructs identified from the literature were fairness of the e-tolling system, the efficiency of public spending with respect to the construction of the upgraded freeways, the financial impact that e-tolling is having on companies and whether companies are complying with e-tolling. Quantitative research was conducted on the responses received from surveys sent to members of the RFA. The findings reveal that e-tolling is perceived to be an unfair system. E-tolling was having a negative impact on company finances yet, companies displayed an overwhelming compliance toward e-tolling. The findings also revealed that much of the literature relevant to individuals was not applicable to companies.