The City of Cape Town will approach the Western Cape High Court today for it to review and set aside Sanral's plan to toll parts of the N1 and N2 freeways. Calling it the trial of the century, mayoral committee member for Transport for Cape Town Brett Herron said the provincial government is committed to preventing Sanral from imposing a devastating decision on the city."The proposed Winelands Toll Scheme is as irrational, reckless and dangerous to our future as the Gauteng e-tolls scheme is."Sanral spokesman Vusi Mona said: "We are going into this trial knowing that this is not the be all and end all of tolling, and that demonising Sanral, which has a legitimate mandate from the [national] government in the rollout of a viable national road network, will not work."The city will argue in its 7000- page application that the decision of the environment minister to provide authorisation for tolling without considering the socioeconomic impact - as he was required to - was unlawful.It will also argue that the decision of the transport minister to declare the toll was unlawful since he failed to consider the merits and impact of tolling.In addition, it will argue that the costs of the proposed tolls on the N1 and N2 significantly outweigh the benefits to toll-paying motorists.Transport economist Andrew Marsay said opposition to tolling was based on the public perception of unfairness .He said this kind of feeling goes back centuries. In 18th century England there was a demand for paving impassable mud roads."Because the government could not fund them, Turnpike Acts were passed which allowed private companies to pave and maintain roads - and to charge for the service."People didn't like it but improved roads helped the movement of goods and people."Marsay said tolling was critical to the national transport policy.Tolling, especially in metropolitan areas, helped manage transport demand rationally. It prevented the situation where demand for roads rises so much that congestion affects everyone, and where demand for public transport progressively declines so that it becomes less and less viable.Ignoring this made it look like Sanral was forcing through something that was wrong, when in fact it was in line with long-established government policy, Marsay said...