What to do with your e-tag?

There might still be a use for that e-tag that you purchased.

On Friday night, the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) sent out e-mails to registered e-toll account holders to explain that their e-tags could still be utilised on other existing toll routes which already have electronic collection systems in place.

“Due to the current lack of clarity regarding the future of e-tolling on Gauteng’s freeways, you may have been contemplating closing your e-toll account,” the e-mail reads.

“There are existing toll routes which already have electronic toll collection systems in place and electronic toll collection lanes will also be implemented at other existing toll plazas in the near future,” Sanral said.

Apparently the e-tags that were purchased by individuals for the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) will work with these existing electronic collection systems.

Sanral also indicates in the e-mail that other existing toll routes will become electronically inter-linked and then the e-tags will work on those as well.

“Whether the Gauteng e-toll system proceeds or not, you can therefore still benefit from retaining your current e-tag to be used at existing and future electronic toll collection lanes, to be converted across the country,” Sanral said.

The agency told the account holders that it will continue to advise them of when and where they can benefit from using their e-tags in this way.

Thousands of e-toll account holders have probably been pondering returning their e-tags to Sanral for a refund. This avenue is still open to account holders, but the agency urged them not to return the e-tags to retailers where it could be purchased, but rather at one of the customer service outlets specifically set up for e-tolling.

Kapsch TrafficCom, the Austrian company that owns a stake in Electronic Toll Collection (ETC), the company that won the tender for collecting the e-tolls, also won the separate tender for the e-tags, or on-board units.

In its latest annual report, Kapsch states that it won the contract to supply a total of 1.5m on-board units for the electronic tolling system to be implemented in Gauteng.

Source: Moneyweb

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