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Man has always been a traveller and in the early days he followed the familiar and well-trodden routes. But man was always in search of the easiest route by following a direct line across a plain, the contours in hilly country or the course of a river. As the traffic developed, so did the function of the road for which the gradient and surface soon became important. Roads were provided as a means of moving people and goods, and as a means of communication. Throughout history, roads have been closely linked with conquest and with social and economic progress. The road infrastructure forms an integral part of the economic development of the country. The problems facing the road authorities can be summed up in one word - money. This problem became serious in 1973 with the initial oil crisis and was followed up by the rapid escalation of costs due to an adverse economical and political environment. As a result there was a reduction in the progress of new roads and a deterioration in the level of service provided by this facility. The aforementioned problem facing the provincial road authorities of a lack of funds to finance the provision and maintenance of the road network, provides a rationale for the area of study, namely the financial administration of the road network, which forms an integral part of the transport infrastructure, with specific reference to Natal. The provincial road network in Natal is funded and controlled by the Roads Branch of the Natal Provincial Administration, whilst the Department of Transport is responsible for the national road network. As a necessary prelude to the area of study, numerous preliminary details are investigated. Initially the development of Provincial Government is investigated. Thereafter the nature of public financial administration is discussed to provide an insight into the functions and processes of this administration. A theoretical perspective is provided on the budgeting systems which are currently in use. The development and classification of the road network in Natal is discussed and is followed by how the rural road network is administered. The current policies from a financial perspective, of the provision and maintenance of the provincial and national road network, is determined. It shows that there is a lack of adequate funds being provided to enable the road authorities to maintain a satisfactory level of service of the road network that is both economical and safe for the road user. The study is concluded with a few recommended strategies which will aid public administrators responsible for the provision and maintenance of the road network to gain an insight into making the most out of the limited resources. The recommended strategies cover the aspects of funding sources, financing policy, road network policy, budget control, and privatisation and deregulation. It is preferable for road financing to be attuned to what the country can afford, and the available road funds should be equitably and rationally distributed according to the physical planning needs. The most advantageous means of collecting money for the funding of road programmes is by means of a dedicated road fund which should be administered by a central road authority, namely the proposed South African Roads Board. It would be this Board's task to execute strategic and financial planning, and also monitor and co-ordinate the provision of roads, of the total road infrastructure in South Africa. The provincial road authorities will continue to execute the provincial road programmes, that is to design, construct and maintain the road network, and would include the national road network. / Thesis (MPA)-University of Durban-Westville, 1988.

M.A. (Public Management and Governance) / The South African road system is managed by the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL), which is an agency under the Department of Transport. The main aim of SANRAL is to connect major cities, towns and emerging villages. It has undertaken a project of upgrading and expanding of the road network in the Gauteng Province of South Africa, known as the e-tolling system. It allows for the free flow Electronic Tolling (E-Toll) system and records all vehicles passing through the tollgate without requiring them to stop or slow. A built-in device (tag) is fitted into the overhead gantry system to detect the passing vehicle, which reads an e-tag (if fitted), as well as recording the number plate of the vehicle. A fee for using the road will be charged and paid later from a registered e-toll account, linked to the vehicle user or if no e-tag is present a bill is submitted to the owner. The primary issue associated with the project relates to complaints from various interest groups, political parties and civic organisations regarding public participation in the planning and execution of e-tolling. This has resulted in mass marches and court cases, with the project, consequently undergoing delays, suspension and postponements. The study is, thus, motivated by the foregoing factors in endeavouring to assess the effectiveness of the public participation process in the initial stages of the e-tolling project. The research utilised an exploratory case study method; comprehensively appraising the public participation areas within the e-tolling project of Gauteng. The study employed both documentation reviews and interviews as data collection methods. The research design was predominantly qualitative, however data analysis was undertaken and presented in both qualitative and quantitative evaluations...

Since 2009 the Metropolitan Municipality of Lima has partnered with private corporations to deliver three highway projects worth US$1.5bn. This process follows a state-building strategy developed since the 1990s to allow different levels of government to deliver infrastructure projects with private finance. In Lima, the model has almost exclusively produced highways through a specific scheme that allows firms to submit unsolicited proposals. In this dissertation, I investigate how the availability of private finance transforms the political process and local planning outcomes. I argue that rather than being simply a solution for cash-strapped governments looking to invest in specific pieces of infrastructure, the introduction of private finance shapes what projects get built. Private finance not only transforms the implementation part of a two-step process: it has a deep impact on the planning phase itself by setting constraints on what can be done and to what ends. I call the specific mechanism by which private finance influences planning ‘unplanning.’ Here, the state is not simply retreating to let the private sector determine priorities. In other words, it is not abandoning planning, or simply not planning. Rather, it is being transformed in order to follow a proactive role in attracting investment, and to adapt planning to the needs of private capital. The dissertation goes beyond understandings of infrastructures as neutral conduits and into their techno-political nature in order to reveal how they reflect, reproduce and become both the conduit and the site of political conflicts between private capital, the state, and urban dwellers.

This dissertation is concerned with the financing of roads in terms of public finance economic theory. The theory of public goods is applied to the case of roads and it is concluded that roads possess significant elements of privateness and are therefore nonpure public goods. Given that roads are nonpure public goods, and that the market for roads has natural monopoly characteristics, it is proposed that user charges have a role to play in the financing of roads. Road user charging techniques such as licence fees, fuel levies, tolls, area licensing, parking charges and weight-distance charges are evaluated. The advantages of user charging versus tax earmarking and general fund financing are examined. A road financing system for South Africa is proposed, whereby National roads are financed by user charges, and Provincial and Local roads are financed partly by user charges and partly by general taxes. / Economics and Management Sciences / Thesis (M.Com.)--University of South Africa, 1996.

This dissertation is concerned with the financing of roads in terms of public finance economic theory. The theory of public goods is applied to the case of roads and it is concluded that roads possess significant elements of privateness and are therefore nonpure public goods. Given that roads are nonpure public goods, and that the market for roads has natural monopoly characteristics, it is proposed that user charges have a role to play in the financing of roads. Road user charging techniques such as licence fees, fuel levies, tolls, area licensing, parking charges and weight-distance charges are evaluated. The advantages of user charging versus tax earmarking and general fund financing are examined. A road financing system for South Africa is proposed, whereby National roads are financed by user charges, and Provincial and Local roads are financed partly by user charges and partly by general taxes. / Economics and Management Sciences / Thesis (M.Com.)--University of South Africa, 1996.