Johannesburg - A convoy, led by Cosatu members, began their trip from Johannesburg to the SA National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) offices in Pretoria on Saturday in protest against the e-toll system.
About 50 vehicles, including motorcycles and minibus taxis, were cheered on by onlookers as they made their way through the streets of Johannesburg before reaching the M1 highway.
Metro police diverted traffic from the convoy's route.
A bakkie at the front of the convoy carried members of the Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu), who bore aloft a wooden coffin with the words “RIP e-tolls” attached to it.
Some of the signs attached to the other vehicles read: “Stop privatization, open national roads,” and “We will not buy e-tolls.”
Cosatu announced on Thursday that it would stage a drive-slow protest to Sanral's offices.
“We are going to hand over a memorandum to the Sanral offices... including burning of the e-tags and the bills which had been received by our people,” Cosatu Gauteng secretary Dumisani Dakile said at the time.
He accused Sanral of abusing more than R20 billion on upgrading the province's highways without consulting citizens.
He suggested Sanral was “selling our public roads to the highest bidder and to monopoly capital without caring about our country and its people.” - Sapa