Last year, the Hungarian government amended the road toll regulation, according to which, from 1 October, the toll rate will increase by the same amount as the inflation rate published by the Central Statistical Office for July of the current year.
In July this year, the Statistical Office set the inflation rate at 17.6%, so the toll paid in the HU-GO system will increase by this amount from 1 October.
The Hungarian Road Haulage Association (Magyar Közúti Fuvarozók Egyesülete – MKFE) has announced on its website that it has sent a letter to János Lázár, the Minister in charge of the Ministry of Transport, to initiate the suspension of inflationary price adjustments.
According to MKFE, this coming increase represents a rise of 41.5 per cent in three years, but the restructuring of the toll system on 1 January 2024 may bring another significant toll increase, making Hungarian tolls among the highest priced in Europe.
The price of fuel, the other major cost factor in transport, is also rising dynamically: between May and August, the price of diesel rose by HUF 100 (approx 0,26 euro) per litre, which is a 20% increase, the organisation adds.
“In some cases, refuelling is already cheaper in neighbouring countries, and after the expected increase in excise duty from January, the difference can be significant, so international carriers and hauliers based close to the border may take their refuelling abroad. This will mean a significant loss of tax revenue for the budget. Due to the high costs, the market loss of Hungarian companies operating in the country is accelerating, the exclusion of Hungarian road hauliers from the domestic and international markets is increasing, while the presence of foreign, mainly third-country, companies is growing,” warns the MKFE in a statement to the government.
According to the association, there is no example in the EU of a toll increase similar to or close to the Hungarian one (41.5% in 3 years), nor of tolls that are not adjusted to the calendar year, but changed during the year.
“This makes it impossible for companies to plan their annual budgets, while a clear expectation from the client side for tenders is a stable annual price fixed in advance,” the organisation states on its website.
The Hungarian Road Haulage Association is initiating a professional consultation with the Ministry of Transport on the review of the road toll system and excise tax rules, as the organisation has its own ideas on how the state could generate revenue from road freight without raising road tolls.
In October, a 17.6 percent toll increase is to be due in Hungary for hauliers using the HU-GO system – according to the road toll regulations amended last year by the Hungarian government. Local road transport organisations have called on the transport ministry to suspend the increase and instead find other ways to increase the budget. For example, they could include vehicles between 2.5-3.5 tons in the HU-GO system and make controls more efficient.