Survey reveals Lukewarm adoption of e-toll tags amongst motorists in Gauteng

BRYANSTON – Only one in every ten (10%) drivers in Gauteng “strongly agree” with the statement “I have bought an e-toll tag already or intend to buy one”.

However, an additional 28% are a bit more lukewarm and “agreed” with the statement. This is according to an Ipsos poll investigating the attitudes of the public towards the e-tolling plans in Gauteng. The questions formed part of a study undertaken from 11 October to 21 November 2013. Last year, in April/May 2012, 14% of Gauteng drivers indicated that they had bought, or intended to buy an e-toll tag. Taking those that “strongly agree” and “agree” together, this figure has now risen to 38% (i.e. about four in every ten motorists), illustrating that although some people are complying with the new rules regarding e-tags, almost the same proportion are adopting a “wait and see” attitude.

More than four in every ten (42%) have not or will not buy an e-toll tag and 44% disagree with the entire concept. “The opposition to e-tolling from various groups, like OUTA, COSATU and others, have made headlines during the last few months.  The findings of this survey confirm that – although more people have bought or intend to buy an e-toll tag than in 2012, opinions in Gauteng province are very much divided,” says Mari Harris, Public Affairs Director at Ipsos. “A strong possibility exists that large numbers of drivers in Gauteng will simply not cooperate with the plea from Sanral and the authorities to buy e-tags.”

When asked whether the government should find an alternative to e-tolling, the majority of drivers in Gauteng (58%) agreed, illustrating the unpopularity of e-tolling.

Technical aspects

• Fieldwork was carried out from 11 October to 21 November 2013by trained and experienced fieldworkers
• Face-to-face in-home interviews were conducted with a randomly chosen sample of 3 565 South Africans, 15 years and older, in the language preferred by the respondent.
• The results were weighted and projected to the universe (i.e. adult South Africans).
• PLEASE NOTE: This release contains results only from the portion of the sample resident in Gauteng, who are 18 years and older and who own or drive vehicles – i.e. those that will be primarily impacted by the e-tolling system