No cash payment at highways from April 1: Major change in toll plazas
While FASTag is already in force, arrangements are being made to enable digital payments at the toll plazas. The government is yet to publish any notification on the banning of cash transaction at the toll plaza.
Kolkata: Come April1 and Indians will no longer be dipping into their wallet to pay toll at a highway toll plaza. Travel on the highways of this country is set to change with the government deciding to ban cash payments at all toll plazas along the national highways. All payments have to made through FASTag or UPI platforms. The decision is expected to curb congestion while simultaneously giving digital transactions a further push.
However, the government is yet to put out an official notification to that effect. But media reports suggest that preparations are already underway to ensure smooth rollout. As is the current system, one can pay toll in cash -- though at a higher rate -- if one doesn't have FAStag. After April 1 this year, the banning of cash transactions at toll plazas can contribute towards the decongestion of the highways at these points. Movement will, therefore, become faster.
Digital payments will also help improve the situation. Once digital payments are implemented , vehicle drivers won;t have to stop for cash transactions or wait for change to be returned. The digitalisation and FASTag can have another benefit. It can cut down the travel time, especially over long distanmces, when one has to negotiate through multiple toll plazas. Transparency of transaction is another benefit. If cash transactions are eliminated, there will not be any question of any revenue leakage or pilferage.
Barrier-free toll model the future
All this could be the stepping stone towards a major leap in toll collection in the future. In a measure to transform the toll collection method, the government is working to put together a barrier-free tolling model. It is formally called a Multi-Lane Free Flow model of travel. The basic feature fo the system is vehicles can pass thorough the toll plazas at the normal speed at which they are travelling and do not have to stop or even slow down. Sensitive scanners will deduct the applicable toll at each point. It is already in use in some developed anuntries and they are being incorporated in the system
A trial run of this stopless toll coollection system is being conducted at 25 toll plazas across the country. The rollout of the system sill depend on the success of the trial run. It has also been reported that if the driver of a vehicle does not have any digital payment platform, he/she would face delays and penalties.