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Mukudzei Chingwere in MASVINGO
THE Zimbabwe National Road Administration (Zinara) is working on a supplementary budget for road authorities following the recent increase in tariffs, board chairman Engineer Michael Madanha has said.

Tolling tariffs have been pushed up to $45 from $10 for light motor vehicles and the improvement of road infrastructure is now being prioritised.

The Beitbridge-Harare-Chirundu Highway will get the biggest chunk of the funds to enable its rehabilitation.

“Since we have increased our (tolling) tariffs, it means we are going to collect more money than what was budgeted at the beginning of the year, so we are going to come up with a supplementary budget and this will obviously benefit every road authority,” said Eng Madanha.

The supplementary budget is expected to be ready next month.

Meanwhile, the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development is on a tour of most tollgates in the country.

It had a brief stopover at the 22 Miles toll plaza in Mutare yesterday to have an appreciation how the system at the tollgate works.

At this tollgate along the Mutare-Masvingo Highway, Zinara is reportedly losing potential revenue through an illegal bypass that goes though the field of a man identified as Padhina Dzumbira.

At the illegal bypass, the man is charging motorists varying sums of money which are below those gazetted by Zinara.

The man denied the parliamentarians access through the bypass.

Some lawmakers tried to remove a wooden boom gate erected, but the man verbally assaulted MPs.

“This is my farm and you do not have a right to enter the premises, I am now calling the Lands Commissioner,” he ranted.

Shurugwi North MP, Cde Robson Nyathi, who was leading the Portfolio Committee, said they will take the matter up.

“What is happening is illegal and we are going to raise our concern with the relevant authorities. We also want to find out the identity of the Lands Commissioner where he gets his power,” said Cde Nyathi.