Monthly Passes For Private Vehicles On Highways Soon: Nitin Gadkari Announces Major Toll Reforms
Monthly Passes For Private Vehicles On Highways Soon: Nitin Gadkari Announces Major Toll Reforms
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari announced that the Central government is considering introducing monthly and yearly toll passes for private vehicles on national highways. He highlighted that private vehicles account for only 26% of the total toll revenue, while 74% comes from commercial vehicles.
Addressing the media, Gadkari stated that toll booths would be strategically placed outside villages to avoid disrupting local residents. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways is also planning to introduce a barrier-free toll collection system using a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) alongside the existing FASTag system.
Gadkari emphasized that the GNSS-based toll system is expected to outperform current methods by ensuring efficiency and transparency. A pilot project for this technology was previously conducted on the Bengaluru-Mysore section of NH-275 in Karnataka and the Panipat-Hisar section of NH-709 in Haryana.
Additionally, the Centre is exploring ways to penalize overweight trucks by detecting their weight at toll plazas. Gadkari announced that tenders for implementing the barrier-free toll system would be issued within the next 15-20 days, with a focus on utilizing Indian technology for the project.
This move aims to enhance convenience for highway users while promoting technological advancements in toll collection.
