Harare, 19 Aug-(ANA)-Motorists in Zimbabwe have begun to pay fees for using roads, after tollgates were put into operation.
The government says the money raised will be reinvested in the road network to make it safer and more efficient.
But there have been reports of delays and confusion as many drivers were apparently unaware of the new measures.
Crashes are frequent on Zimbabwe's roads - Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's wife was killed on a bad stretch of road earlier this year.
It happened a month after Mr Tsvangirai had joined a unity government in a bid to revive the country's economy, battered by years of hyperinflation and economic contraction.
Road-safety campaigners have welcomed the tollgates.
Announcing the move, transport minister Nicholas Goche said 90% of the fees raised by the tolls would be invested in road infrastructure.
"There are many people who wanted us to repair the roads first, yes we should have done that but we do not have the money so we need the users of the road to pay so that we can use the money to repair the roads," he said.
Fees range from $1 for cars and light vehicles to $5 for large lorries.
In another development, the national airline, Air Zimbabwe, has announced huge job cuts.
Airline officials said they were cutting 500 jobs - a third of the workforce - to enable the carrier to survive. (ANA)
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