Hon Chair, the e-toll system has been implemented in Gauteng without regard for or any consultation with its citizens. It appears that this trend will continue as this system gets rolled out in other provinces. The Minister needs to move the farcical Makhura e-tolls review panel talkshop to Gauteng where its competency actually lies.
The Minister and government talk about moving people off roads and into public transport; yet, what it says and what it does contradict each other. The largest portion of the budget continues to be allocated to roads and road-related activities and entities. Larger portions of this budget need to go to rail, which should be the backbone of any public transport system.
The limp-wristed attempts to curb our ongoing road carnage month after month have yielded very little successes; yet these failed and failing campaigns continue to be rolled out. The Minister needs to introduce campaigns that will actually work and considerably reduce road crashes. I have only listed three issues, but I could go on and list many more.
The development of our transport infrastructure goes hand in hand with the development of our economy and, in order for us to make some real changes, we need to revolutionise the way we think about transport. The DA will thus not be supporting this budget. Thank you.