Source: Harare eyes expressways, e-tolls to fund road upgrades –Newsday Zimbabwe
Mafume said Harare could adopt a similar system on selected urban expressways, with revenue ring fenced for road maintenance and infrastructure development.HARARE, Jul 1 (NewsDay Live)- City aithorities here are considering introducing expressways and an electronic tolling (e-toll) system as part of an ambitious plan to modernise the capital’s road network, ease congestion and generate sustainable funding for infrastructure maintenance.
Mayor Jacob Mafume told NewsDay Live that the local authority was exploring new financing models to improve service delivery, adding that conventional funding sources were no longer adequate to support the city’s growing infrastructure needs.
He said Harare’s rapidly expanding population, now estimated at more than three million people, required a modern transport system capable of meeting increasing demand, while reducing traffic congestion.
“The global norm is to make service delivery bankable. For us to invest in infrastructure and maintain it on a continuous basis, we need sustainable sources of funding. One way of making urban roads bankable is through user-pay systems,” Mafume said.
He noted that Harare’s road network stretches for about 6 000 kilometres, making it one of the country’s largest road systems and placing enormous pressure on the city’s maintenance budget.
“Our road network is extensive. If highways require tollgates for maintenance, then it is reasonable to consider how we can sustainably finance an even larger urban road network,” he said.
He noted that motorists already pay road user fees to the central government, but local authorities receive little direct benefit from those collections.
“We all know that the road user fees people are paying go to central government and are not coming directly to the cities. Even if they were allocated back to local authorities, those funds would still not be sufficient to maintain the road network,” he said.
Electronic tolling allows motorists to pay road charges electronically without stopping at traditional toll plazas with cameras and electronic sensors that identify vehicles as they pass designated points, with payments processed automatically through prepaid accounts or other electronic payment systems. The model is widely used in several countries to fund the construction, maintenance and upgrading of transport infrastructure while reducing delays associated with conventional toll booths.
Mafume said Harare could adopt a similar system on selected urban expressways, with revenue ring fenced for road maintenance and infrastructure development.
“Many modern cities have introduced specialised highways where motorists pay to use the roads. We can develop urban toll roads and reinvest the revenue into improving infrastructure,” he said.
Beyond road financing, the city is also pursuing public-private partnerships to improve public transport facilities. Mafume said the local authority was engaging bus and commuter omnibus operators under a public-private partnership arrangement to rehabilitate bus termini and commuter ranks.
“We are engaged in a public-private partnership deal with bus operators and kombi operators whereby they revamp the ranks and operate them, with a percentage of the revenue going to the city while the remainder is used to maintain the facilities,” he said.
“The city has grown beyond three million people and it is no longer viable to continue operating the way we have been.”
The mayor also announced tougher measures to curb the destruction of road infrastructure caused by utility companies and contractors digging trenches to install underground pipes and cables, saying the city is reviewing its by-laws to impose stricter penalties on those who fail to restore roads after excavation works.
“We are looking at strengthening our by-laws so that anyone granted permission to dig roads faces strict penalties if they fail to restore the road properly,” Mafume said.
He added: “We are moving towards a complete ban on unnecessary road digging. Instead, service providers should use modern tunnelling technology that allows cables and pipes to be installed beneath roads without damaging the surface.”
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