The Road Fund Administration (RFA) on Tuesday informed members of the public of the deferment of its proposed road tolling programme until further notice.
In a media release issued by the Office of the Chief Executive Officer on Tuesday, the RFA said it received policy support from government in 2022 to engage stakeholders on the introduction of tolling in Namibia.
“As a result of the prevailing economic climate, coupled with high interest rates and inflation, the RFA has decided to defer the planned stakeholder and public consultations on the implementation of the tolling of roads in Namibia until further notice,” the media release read.
RFA explained that it commissioned two feasibility studies on tolling, which concluded that tolling is economically and practically feasible in Namibia.
It said roads authorities and agencies worldwide are under financial pressure to maintain ageing road networks with rapidly diminishing resources.
As road conditions deteriorate, vehicle operating costs rise due to faster vehicle wear and tear and increased travel time, it added.
“As a result, the RFA looked into the viability of introducing road tolls as an additional revenue stream to maintain the N.dollars 101 billion national road network. The feasibility study found that 21 roads can fund N.dollars 5.8 billion in capital and maintenance expenditure over five years, possibly generating N.dollars 7.5 billion in additional revenue to subsidise roadworks across the entire network,” RFA noted.
It further said empirical research shows that tolled roads are better maintained, resulting in more jobs, economic opportunities and lower vehicle operation costs.
“According to additional econometric analysis, tolling would add N.dollars 1.7 billion to the Namibian economy, increasing growth domestic product by 0.4 per cent annually,” it said.
The RFA said the total funding needs for the 2023/24 financial year are N.dollars 4.2 billion, resulting in a finding gap of 22 per cent of the allocated budget.
Source: The Namibia Press Agency