Drivers paid $800m for unused VicRoads computer system

VICTORIAN drivers have shelled out $800 million through a special levy to pay for a VicRoads computer system that never got off the ground. The levy hasn’t been removed — where is the money going?

VICTORIAN drivers have shelled out $800 million for a VicRoads computer system that never got off the ground.

For the past six years, vehicle owners have paid more than $200 each on their registrations to meet the cost of developing the dud RandL drivers’ database.

A special $35 annual levy was introduced by the Baillieu government in July 2012 to help make up a funding shortfall after the cost of establishing RandL blew out.

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The troubled program was abandoned in 2015, but the levy was never removed.

Instead, both Coalition and Labor governments have been pocketing the extra cash.

Questioned on Thursday about whether it would consider withdrawing the charge, the Andrews Government would only say “vehicle registration fees fund important upgrades and maintenance”.

When the levy was introduced, John Lenders, then the Labor leader in the Legislative Council, ­labelled it an “unashamed cash grab” and demanded to know when it would be removed.

By the time RandL was ditched, $100 million had already been blown trying to set it up.

Victorian drivers shelled out millions of dollars for a VicRoads computer system that never got off the ground. Generic picture

A whistleblower who once worked at VicRoads said: “They’re still operating on the same computer system as before this was levied. The amount of money that disappeared with RandL was enormous.”

It was initially intended that facial recognition technology, which has been in use for years elsewhere in Australia, would be introduced as part of the new RandL licensing and registration database.

But it never went ahead, and Victoria continues to lag behind with a system that is incompatible with the Victoria Police database.

A Victorian Ombudsman’s report on state information technology projects in 2011 noted the RandL project had been the subject of cost overruns.

The then ombudsman, ­George Brouwer, also wrote that the concerns he had raised in 2005 and again in 2007 had not been addressed.

“I am also disappointed that yet another review of the project was commissioned,” Mr Brouwer wrote.

George Brouwer, who as Victorian Ombudsman in 2011. Picture: Brett Hartwig

VicRoads’ director of service strategy, Jill Fitzroy, said it was always looking at how to better serve motorists.

“We manage more than 23,000km of arterial roads across Victoria, 5.7 million vehicle registrations and more than 4.6 million registered drivers,” she said.

“Registration fees play an important role in delivering the services Victorians expect,” Ms Fitzroy said.

“Our registration fees remain among the lowest in the country.

“Our new, online portal, MyVicRoads, has improved the way we deliver these essential services by allowing customers to access a range of services in a more convenient way,” she said.

Government spokesman Ben McNair said: “We’re investing more in our state’s road network than any government in our state’s history, building dozens of major road projects and fixing the suburban and regional roads people rely on every day.

“Vehicle registration fees fund important upgrades and maintenance to keep our road network safe and reliable for the more than 4.6 million registered drivers across Victoria,” Mr McNair said.

“VicRoads manages more than 25 million customer transactions every year, many through its hugely successful MyVicRoads platform, which is also funded through registration fees.”

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