Aussie drivers urged to cash in on $140 million in unclaimed funds
The NSW government has urged Sydney motorists to access its toll road relief scheme, with $140 million left unclaimed since the cost-of-living support measure was introduced last year.
Drivers who spend more than $60 in tolls weekly can claim the excess back under the "toll cap" introduced by the Minns government to help highly-tolled residents in Western Sydney.
On Monday, Roads Minister John Graham said that while $75 million had already been paid to motorists, there's still $140 million yet to be claimed.
“I want to remind motorists to get on to the Service NSW website and claim what they are entitled to in relief,” Graham said in a statement.
Around 720,000 drivers are eligible for a slice of the payments.
Over the past year, more than 276,000 claims were paid since the scheme was introduced, with an average claim of $277, according to the government.
There were 115 suburbs where the average claim was $300 or more, including Parramatta, Lidcombe, Schofields, Westmead, Toongabbie, Merrylands and Auburn.
“We know people are doing it tough and the toll cap is making it just that little bit fairer for drivers that heavily rely on the toll roads,” Graham said.
He also added that reform talks with private toll road companies are still ongoing.
In December, the government struck an in-principle deal with Transurban, a toll road operator, for a network-wide pricing system in attempt to ease the impact of toll payments on motorists.
“The NSW government is progressing with toll reform to make tolls fairer overall,” Graham said on Monday.
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