The verdict in three sentences
A toll road concessionaire website is at once a public information service, a sales channel for electronic tolling and the corporate showcase of a concession watched by the state, lenders and the press. A realistic 2026 budget, taking Dakar as the reference market, sits between 18 and 40 million FCFA (about 27,000 to 61,000 EUR), including 4 to 8 million FCFA for real-time traffic data connected to operations systems. The project should be run like infrastructure: a tender, a precise specification, 99.9% uptime and a 5 to 7 month timeline.
Three audiences, three journeys on one site
With 80,000 passages a day, most web traffic comes from mobile phones, often on unstable 3G or 4G, right before departure. The daily driver wants to know whether the Dakar, Diamniadio, AIBD corridor is clear, check the toll for their vehicle class and top up their tag. The haulier manages a fleet of tags and monthly invoices. The ministry, lenders and journalists look for the concession agreement, annual reports, road safety indicators and press releases.
| Audience | Main need | Feature | Success indicator |
|---|---|---|---|
| Occasional driver | Tolls, route, traffic status | Tolls by class page, traffic map | Load time under 2 s on 3G |
| Toll tag subscriber | Top-up, balance, history | Subscriber area, Wave and Orange Money payment | Share of online top-ups |
| Haulier fleet | Multiple tags, invoices | Business account, accounting export | Fewer customer service calls |
| Press | Releases, roadwork alerts | Newsroom, alert subscription | Media coverage |
| State and lenders | Transparency, performance | Reports, indicators, open data | Compliance with concession commitments |
| Drivers with disabilities | Accessible reading | WCAG 2.1 AA compliance | Accessibility audit passed |
Detailed 2026 budget
| Lot | Content | 2026 budget (FCFA) |
|---|---|---|
| Scoping, UX and design | Workshops, journeys, FR/EN mockups, brand guide | 3,000,000 to 6,000,000 |
| Corporate CMS website | 40 to 80 pages, approval workflow, newsroom | 6,000,000 to 12,000,000 |
| Real-time traffic data | API link to sensors and operations center, map, alerts | 4,000,000 to 8,000,000 |
| Toll tag subscriber area | Account, tags, top-up, invoices, fleet accounts | 4,000,000 to 10,000,000 |
| Accessibility and security | WCAG 2.1 AA audit, penetration test, CSP headers | 1,000,000 to 2,500,000 |
| Infrastructure | CDN, 99.9% high availability, 24/7 monitoring | 150,000 to 400,000 / month |
| Maintenance and SLA | Fixes, enhancements, on-call | 300,000 to 900,000 / month |
The subscriber area is the most sensitive lot: it handles drivers' money and must interface with the central toll system. Wave and Orange Money top-ups are now expected by Senegalese drivers, with instant balance confirmation.
Timeline and tender requirements
A project of this size usually follows concession rules and the public procurement code when the state is a shareholder. Allow 4 to 6 weeks to write the specification and consult, 3 to 4 weeks of evaluation, then 4 to 5 months of delivery. The specification should require reversibility (source code, access, documentation), hosting with a disaster recovery plan, compliance with Senegal's 2008-12 personal data law and approval by the CDP data authority for subscriber data processing.
Mini case study
Ms. Faye, communications director of a toll road operator in Senegal, compares two scenarios. Today, the call center handles 9,000 calls a month about balances, tolls and top-ups, at about 1,200 FCFA per call, so 10,800,000 FCFA a month. A 30 million FCFA website with a subscriber area and live traffic aims for 40% fewer calls: 3,600 calls avoided, or 4,320,000 FCFA saved per month. After 600,000 FCFA a month of infrastructure and maintenance, the net gain reaches 3,720,000 FCFA a month and the project pays back in about 8 months.
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FAQ
Why does real-time traffic data cost 4 to 8 million FCFA?
Because the site must connect to operations center data (counts, incidents, cameras), normalize it and display it without overloading servers. The budget includes the map, alerts and a fallback mode when sensors fail.
Is 99.9% uptime realistic in Senegal?
Yes, with an international CDN and redundant hosting, which means at most 8 h 45 of downtime per year. Infrastructure costs between 150,000 and 400,000 FCFA a month.
Can drivers top up a toll tag with Wave?
Technically yes, through the Wave merchant API, and likewise with Orange Money. The top-up must be confirmed within seconds and credited in the central toll system, which requires end-to-end testing.
Should the site be available in Wolof?
It is not mandatory, but key messages (tolls, alerts, help) in Wolof improve understanding. A full FR/EN site with a few Wolof pages adds 1 to 2 million FCFA.
Who owns the code and data at the end of the contract?
The concessionaire, if the contract states it explicitly: IP assignment, handover of code and access, documentation. Require this clause from the tender stage.
Let's scope your project. Share your specification or goals (traffic, electronic tolling, transparency): we propose pricing by lot, a 5 to 7 month plan and matching SLA commitments. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.