N3 toll cost calculator for trucks

Budgeting for tolls on a trucking route

Tolls are one of the few running costs you can know to the cent before a truck leaves the yard. The tariff for each plaza and vehicle class is published, so a route's toll bill is simply the sum of the plazas the vehicle passes, multiplied by the number of trips. The hard part is keeping the figures current and making sure every quote and every cost per km calculation includes them.

Step 1: get the class right

At conventional plazas the class follows the number of axles on the vehicle. Class 1 covers light vehicles. Heavy vehicles are Class 2 (2 axles), Class 3 (3 or 4 axles) and Class 4 (5 or more axles). A rigid truck and the same truck pulling a trailer can fall into different classes, so price each configuration you actually run.

Step 2: list the plazas on the route

A straight run on the N3 between Durban and Johannesburg passes five mainline plazas: Mariannhill, Mooi, Tugela, Wilge and De Hoek. Ramp plazas such as Mooi, Treverton, Bergville and Tugela East only apply if the vehicle joins or leaves the highway at that interchange. For other routes, add each plaza with the amount for your class from the official tariff list.

Step 3: multiply by the trips

Decide whether you are pricing a one-way delivery or a round trip, then multiply by the number of trips in a month. The monthly figure belongs in your fleet cost per km calculation; the per trip figure belongs in every quote for that lane.

Keeping toll costs under control

• Recover tolls in the rate: quote per lane and show tolls as a line item where the contract allows it.
• Reconcile toll statements against trips. A toll charge with no matching trip, or a route with more plazas than planned, is worth a question.
• Check whether you qualify for frequent-user discounts. SANRAL says these now require a Tag.
• Update your figures every year. The tariffs change annually, and an out-of-date quote loses money on every load.
• Compare toll routes against alternatives on total cost, not toll alone: a longer toll-free route costs fuel, tyres, driver hours and time.

About the tariff data

The N3 amounts are taken from SANRAL's explanatory poster for tariffs effective 1 March 2026, which states that it does not replace Government Gazette Nos. 54087 and 54088 (5 February 2026). Amounts are per passage and include VAT. Discounts are not applied. If a figure here differs from the Gazette or the amount charged at the plaza, the official figure applies.