N2 toll road slammed as 'supreme folly'

The Mercury reports this is according to lawyers representing communities on the Wild Coast who have lodged final legal objections to prevent the N2 Wild Coast toll road from going ahead. The objection has been lodged by Cormac Cullinan in response to previous submissions by the SA National Roads Agency (Sanral). The toll proposal was approved by the national Environmental Affairs Department this year, but several groups have appealed to the Environmental Affairs Minister to scrap the project. In the latest submission, Cullinan disputes claims by Sanral that building a new toll road along the Wild Coast would help to create jobs and uplift rural communities in Pondoland. The report quotes Cullinan as saying: 'The Wild Coast communities whom we represent and who live in these areas have clearly and repeatedly expressed their frustrations at the inadequacies of the public participation process and their opposition to the N2 toll road.' According to him, the Environmental Affairs Minister had no legal alternative but to scrap the toll road proposal because the environment impact assessment had not considered the full socio-economic impacts of tolling. Full report in The Mercury (subscription needed)