UPDATE: Toll plaza rip-offs cause public outrage
Motorists have to be vigilant not be short-changed by rogue employees when passing through toll gates
FOLLOWING the publication of a motorist’s short-changing incident at Mtunzini Toll Plaza, Zululanders have agreed that this is a far-reaching problem which needs to be addressed at the highest level.
‘It’s disgusting. R1 per car eventually adds up and you as a motorist have no options if you are alone as you can’t count change. And it’s not only at Mtunzini,’ said Caleb Joshua Andrews.
‘This has happened to us so often. We now say how much money we are handing over and I always check the change before I start driving off. Often when you say the change is short, the extra change is ready in the person’s hand to give to you,’ agreed Patty Percival.
Port Shepstone resident Nikki Peeriyalal said, ‘We drove this toll booth twice, on the way to St Lucia from Port Shepstone and back home. Both times we were ripped off by R20 when we paid with a R100 note. That’s R40!’
Simangele Nene said, ‘I think this happens to most people and each one thinks it is a one-off mistake.
I remember in the early 2000s when cards were swiped twice, only to see the double transactions much later on the bank statements.’
SANRAL’s (South African National Roads Agency Ltd) Eastern Region Project Manager, Kersen Naidoo, had the issue thoroughly investigated by Intertoll Africa.
ALSO READ: Mtunzini toll rip-off investigated
‘The outcome revealed the toll collector to have transgressed company protocol and appropriate disciplinary action would be instituted.’
All N2 toll booths are equipped with surveillance cameras, monitoring toll booth activity.
‘As an aid to its objective of spreading the message of zero tolerance to malpractice, SANRAL subscribes to a fraud hotline service, operated by Tip-Offs Anonymous,’ said Naidoo.
This service ensures complete anonymity when reporting fraud or other suspected illegal activities, and can be contacted either by telephone on 0800 204 558 or email sanral@tip-offs.com.
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