The Automobile Association on Friday handed the finance ministry a 52,000 signature petition against the proposed tolling of Gauteng freeways.
The signatures were collected in under a month, said AA public affairs manager Gary Ronald, who handed the petition to the Treasury's head of communications Jabulani Sikhakhane in Pretoria.
“There was such a sense of anger and outrage that the public were showing,” said Ronald.
In a letter to Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, which accompanied the petition, the AA had called for the tolling not to be implemented, he said.
Ronald said the annual fuel levy currently charged should be solely for the use of roads.
The Gauteng toll fees were set earlier this year at 66 cents a kilometre, but were put on hold after a public outcry.
A Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project e-toll steering committee was formed to reassess the pricing.
Ronald said the petition would also be handed to Transport Minister Sbu Ndebele next week.
“We cannot believe the cost per kilometre is so high on roads that did not have to be built from scratch,” he said.
Sikhakhane said he could not comment on the petition. - Sapa