Automated tolls proposed for Nigeria
The Nigerian government has announced plans to return to toll fees for federal roads, according to a report by the International Centre for Investigative Reporting.
This comes just weeks after value added taxes in that country were increased to 7.5%.
According to Minister of Housing and Works, Bababtunde Raji Fashola and Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed the Federal Government are finalising plans to implment cashless payment in toll plazas. This information was shared during a State House briefing at the end of Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting.
Fashola told those assembled for the briefing: “There is no reason why we can’t toll, there was a policy of the government to abolish tolls or as it were, dismantle toll plaza but there is no law that prohibits tolling in Nigeria today. We expect to return toll plazas, we have concluded their designs of what they will look like, what materials they will be built with, what new considerations must go into them.”
According to the minister, the government wants to “limit significantly if not totally eliminate cash at the plazas while ensuring that electronic devices that are being used do not impede rapid movement.”
The project is at an advanced stage, with the ministry only trying to finalise plans on how the bank end runs which is important in facilitating the use of the digital tolling system.
He added that government was working on acquiring more land - due to the fact that the tolls are proposed to be about ten lanes.
Fashola also announced that the government has approved additional N15.765 billion for the 101 km Suleja-Minna-Lambata road and Ibadan-Lagere-Ilesa bypass.