The Construction Industries Federation of Namibia (CIF) wants the City of Windhoek to delay the enforcement of its new heavy-vehicle permit system.
CIF on Thursday said the additional costs could increase construction prices and put pressure on contractors.
The City’s Heavy Vehicle Access and Permit System came into effect on 1 September.
Camera-based enforcement and spot fines are expected to start on 1 October.
Under the system, vehicles weighing nine tonnes or more need permits to travel outside designated heavy-vehicle routes.
CIF chief executive Bärbel Kirchner says the construction industry supports measures to protect roads and improve safety, but construction vehicles need access to sites throughout Windhoek.
“Construction vehicles must reach the places where houses, roads, schools, offices and other infrastructure are being built. Ready-mix concrete trucks, tippers, cranes, concrete pumps, lowbeds, water tankers and material-delivery vehicles cannot perform their work from the bypass or remain only on designated industrial routes,” she says.
Each permit carries a non-refundable N$600 application fee and monthly charges of up to N$500 per vehicle.
CIF said this means a vehicle weighing more than 32 tonnes could cost a company N$6 600 in permit fees over a year.
The federation said a fleet of 10 such vehicles could cost N$66 000, excluding administrative costs and delays.
Kirchner says these costs could eventually be passed on through the construction supply chain, which includes contractors, transporters, material suppliers, plant-hire companies and subcontractors.
“A charge may appear manageable when considered on its own, but businesses do not pay it in isolation. This is another cost added to fuel, vehicle licensing, road-user charges, insurance, finance, guarantees, wages, equipment and numerous regulatory and municipal requirements,” she stresses.
The federation said contractors working on existing fixed-price projects could be particularly affected because they may not be able to recover costs introduced after their tenders were submitted.
Kirchner says contractors may have to absorb the costs from their profit margins.
“There comes a point where the cumulative cost, administrative burden and business risk make it commercially unviable to continue operating. When formal construction businesses scale down or close, the consequences include job losses, reduced investment, a smaller tax base and a decline in Namibia’s capacity to deliver housing and infrastructure,” she says.
The CIF said the city introduced the system without consulting the construction industry and other affected businesses.
Kirchner says giving companies one month before enforcement begins does not amount to proper consultation.
“Announcing a system and then giving affected businesses one month to comply is not meaningful consultation. By that stage, the decision has already been made, the charges have been fixed and businesses are simply expected to carry another cost,” she says.
The CIF plans to meet the city and ask it to postpone enforcement for construction-related vehicles until consultations have taken place.
It also wants the city to assess the economic impact of the system and consider special arrangements for the construction industry, including annual, fleet-based or project-based permits.
The federation wants provisions for hired vehicles, once-off deliveries, emergency work, public infrastructure projects and contracts that were already in place before the permit system started.
“This is not opposition to responsible road management. CIF is asking that the cumulative cost of doing business and the practical realities of construction be properly considered before fines are imposed,” Kirchner says.
