- New NHAI guidelines mandate multi-lane free flow tolling on upcoming highways
- Electronic toll collection will replace conventional toll plazas for faster passage
- Traffic forecasting must include current data and future freight growth projections
Motorists could eventually pass through toll points on new high-speed national highways without slowing down, after the National Highways Authority of India introduced new planning and design guidelines that require provisions for multi-lane free flow tolling.
The guidelines will apply to upcoming four-lane and six-lane greenfield and brownfield high-speed, access-controlled national highways, excluding expressways, according to NDTV sources.
Under MLFF, tolls can be collected electronically as vehicles move through the highway instead of stopping at conventional toll plazas. The NHAI has also pushed for more detailed traffic forecasting before new corridors are designed. Planners will have to consider present traffic, possible diversions and future freight growth linked to economic and commercial activity, with toll and other reliable datasets used to improve projections.
Also Read | Layoffs Are Rising In Tech, But These Skills Are Helping People Unlock Better Pay
Also Read | 10 Mins To Crash Site, 1 Hour To Hospital: NHAI Sets Strict Timelines For Highway Ambulances
The authority is also bringing construction technology into the planning framework. Automated and Intelligent Machine-aided Construction (AI-MC) can be deployed for highway embankments and pavement work, with the aim of improving accuracy, quality and monitoring.
Environmental features will now be considered from the project-design stage. Landscaping and plantations can be planned around medians, loop areas and flyovers, with species selection based on local environmental conditions. Drip irrigation systems are also proposed for medians to reduce water consumption.
The NHAI has simultaneously tightened drainage planning. Detailed Project Reports must identify discharge points for rainwater from highways and surrounding areas, while water-harvesting structures will be developed where natural outlets are unavailable.
Special drainage provisions will also be required around underpasses, flyovers and depressed medians to prevent waterlogging. The framework is aimed at creating safer, greener and future-ready high-speed highway corridors capable of handling changing traffic and infrastructure needs.
Essential Business Intelligence, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice, Daily Fuel, Gold and Silver Prices and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.
