Serious question here, do you guys really think we will be able to boycott this long enough for it to fall apart?
I think a few months of non-payment will cause such a backlog for SANRAL that they will have to relent.
Some of us might get fined or end up in court. But in any war there are casualties.
I'm willing to do my part, are you?
We need to create an FAQ though on the procedures involved in rejecting the billing.
E.g...
1) Don't buy and etag and don't pay for anything.
2) Avoid the toll gantries as much as possible.
3) If you do receive an invoice in the mail, log a dispute or do something else to delay it... eg. Write a letter citing financial difficulty.
4) If they send letters of demand ignore them until they send a lawyer's letter or a summons.
5) At that point you can either get legal counsel or decide to fight it yourself in court. (you can also try legal aid)
6) If you are summonsed, you should go to court, but have your arguments ready.
7) Tell the judge you have been driving these roads for twenty years and you were never consulted about the new tolling system.
8) Tell him that the public participation process was flawed and biased. Basically it was rammed through.
9) Tell him you already paid tax on those roads through fuel tax and PAYE tax.
10) Tell him there is no viable public transport alternative (there are no buses in your area, or not enough buses or taxis for everybody, or they are unsafe or unreliable, etc.)
11) Tell him there is no major alternative route to take as SANRAL has tolled ALL the highways in Gauteng and the back roads are not designed to carry such a load.
12) Tell him that the fees are excessive and you really cannot afford them. Bring a budget with to show him.
13) Tell him that the fee collection system is subject to abuse.
14) Tell him that the taxi and bus exemption is unfair and amounts to a form of discrimination.
15) etc. etc.
Be ready for the fact that if he rules against you, you will be liable for the fees, plus interest and possible legal costs (although you can dispute those due to financial difficulty), but you will have done your part in clogging up the system. The process to get you into court can take up to a year. So SANRAL will be WAY, WAY behind on following up on everybody.
