The Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (ZINARA) has set aside funds to convert tollgates into toll plazas or shopping centres as part of the parastatal’s transformation strategy.
Chief Executive of the state-owned entity, Mr Nkosinathi Ncube said toll plazas will deter would-be unscrupulous motorists from gaining free passage. He said:
Toll plazas are integrated infrastructure that are non porous and resemble modern trends that do not give room to provide free passage. ZINARA has invested in the toll plazas and our aim is to ensure that all motorists pay for the rehabilitation of the country’s roads. A toll plaza is different from an ordinary tollgate as it has expanded infrastructure with enough barricades to ensure no one evades or avoids the passage. It is also digitalised, such that all vehicles’ number plates are scanned and detected to ascertain if they are exempted from paying fees.
Mr Ncube also said the introduction of a prepayment package will improve efficiency at the toll plazas. He said ZINARA was engaging banks to link its system to reduce the waiting time by motorists to pass through tollgates.
Revenue collected by ZINARA is used for the rehabilitation and construction of the country’s roads.
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