Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: The road transport ministry on Thursday notified that no cash transactions for toll payments will be allowed from April 10, aiming to reduce queuing of vehicles at toll gates, often a major irritant for commuters.In a move to eliminate the practice of commuters flashing identity cards at toll booths seeking user fee exemptions on NHs and expressways, the road transport ministry has reached out to government entities and offices to either get “Exempted FASTags” for those who fall under the exemption category or buy a FASTag annual pass. Annual pass for private cars costs Rs 3,075 and allows crossing of 200 toll plazas.This move is expected to put an end to altercations at toll plazas. Additionally, on Thursday evening, the ministry notified that no cash transactions for toll payments will be allowed from April 10. This aims to reduce queuing of vehicles at toll gates, which is often a major irritant for commuters.As per the notification, in case a vehicle doesn’t have a valid FASTag, the driver or vehicle owner can pay the toll charge through UPI, which will be 1.25 times the normal user fee. If they don’t opt to pay the fee through UPI, such a vehicle will be dealt with as per Rule 14 of NH Fee Rules, which provides for denying entry or removing the vehicle from the NH section. The highway authority can also issue an e-notice for a pending toll charge, and failure to make the payment within three days will attract double the charge.On the push to pursue authorities and exempted category vehicles to go for designated FASTag or annual pass, an official said, “The exemption from paying toll is linked to an authority or an office and not to an individual. But people often show their identity cards to avoid paying toll even when they are in their personal vehicles. This results in arguments at toll booths.” He added that people should adopt this quickly, considering that NHAI will fast-track the rollout of multi-lane free flow or signal-free tolling across the NH network. Vehicles without valid FASTags will get an e-notice of unpaid toll.
