The Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance (Outa) has derided minister of transport Dipuo Peters’ report on statistics showing an increase in e-toll collections.

According to Outa, Peters’ comparison of e-toll collections for May and June with the preceding seven months was misleading.

“When comparing revenue growth and business performance it is important to equate this to the same period last year, as well as to one’s original targets. Outa categorically states that any attempt to talk the e-toll numbers up as a result of May and June’s e-toll revenues at R78m is nothing but a farce,” Outa chairman Wayne Duvenage said in a statement on Monday.

According to the statistics released by Peters, payments for May were R76m and for June R78m. Furthermore, payments ranged from R45m in January to R68m in March.

On 20 May, deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the monthly cap for e-toll fees would be “dramatically reduced” from R450/month to R225.

Sanral spokesman Vusi Mona said that the base period used to assess the number of e-toll collections coincides with Ramaphosa’s announcement.

“In May and June we’ve seen an increase in collection with the frame of reference being when the deputy president made the announcement of the new dispensation — we assessed what has been the attitude of road users since the new dispensation,” he said. — Fin24