The problem of finding change at toll plazas may get mitigated soon as the National Highways Authority of India is mulling to entirely do away with cash payments at toll plazas from April 1, according to a government press release on Friday.
The move is being considered in order to develop a fully digital national highway tolling ecosystem. Once implemented, all toll payments at national highway fee plazas will be processed exclusively through digital modes using FASTag or the Unified Payments Interface.
The proposed measure is aimed at consolidating the gains achieved in electronic toll Collection and strengthening the efficiency and reliability of national highway fee plaza operations.
The transition also aims to enhance ‘ease of commuting' for national highway users by improving lane throughput, reducing congestion at fee plazas, and bringing greater consistency and transparency in toll transactions.
In the past few years, over 98% penetration of FASTag has significantly transformed toll collection practices in the country. At present, an overwhelming proportion of toll transactions are processed electronically through RFID-enabled FASTag affixed to vehicles, facilitating seamless and contactless movement across toll plazas.
Additionally, UPI payment facilities have been operationalised at the national highway toll plazas, ensuring availability of instant and accessible digital payment options for national highway commuters nationwide, the release highlighted.
Toll Plaza Rule Refresher
As per national highway fee rules, vehicles entering a toll plaza without a valid, functional FASTag are charged twice the applicable user fee, if the fee payment is made in cash.
Whereas national highway users who opt to pay via UPI are charged only 1.25 times of the user fee for the applicable vehicle category. These initiatives were aimed at reducing dependency on cash transactions and digitising the tolling framework.
Why Drive Cashless?
Plaza-level assessments indicate that cash-based payments contribute to congestion, increased waiting times during peak traffic periods and transaction-related disputes.
A complete transition to digital only mode of payment may strengthen operational efficiency, improve traffic management, minimise delays and enhance overall national highway user experience at over 1,150 fee plazas on various national highways and expressways in the country.
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