Billboard owners, emboldened by industry intimidation tactics and government inaction, are costing local and national authorities millions of rands in lost revenue.

Billboard owners, emboldened by industry intimidation tactics and government inaction, are costing local and national authorities millions of rands in lost revenue.

The outdoor advertising industry has gone rogue.

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The South African National Roads Agency (Sanral), backed by the City of Ekurhuleni, admitted that not a single billboard on the R21 freeway -- stretching from Johannesburg to OR Tambo International Airport -- has been lawfully installed.

An investigation by Daily Maverick uncovered that billboard owners, emboldened by industry intimidation tactics and government inaction, are costing local and national authorities millions of rands in lost revenue. Worse yet, some are structurally unsound and could collapse, endangering motorists. They can also cause dangerous conditions by obstructing road signs.

Outdoor advertisers are required to pay upfront fees -- up to R400,000 -- for leases at high-visibility spots, as well as 20% of their monthly earnings from the billboards to the local and national entities, a regulation that's largely ignored.

There is a deliberate pattern of non-compliance -- companies exploit loopholes to install boards on private property, knowing that enforcement is weak and legal battles are costly for authorities. Monitoring efforts have been largely abandoned by road and council officials, allowing illegal installations to...