NEW DELHI: The government is looking to ease the financial burden on regular commuters regarding highway tolls by introducing annual and lifetime passes. This development is likely to revolutionize the experience of toll payments, thus making journeys much smoother and more economical.
A proposed 'annual toll pass' will give the regular commuters, particularly the middle class and private car owners, the option of an annual pass to be paid once at Rs 3,000, or a lifetime pass to remain valid for 15 years at Rs 30,000. These proposals are being considered by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, and it is further exploring the idea of reducing toll rates per kilometer to be able to better benefit highway users.
The new passes will be added to the existing FASTags, so there is no need for separate purchases. So, at present, there is only one monthly pass, which costs around Rs 340 and, thus, goes up to Rs 4,080 in a year. The proposed annual pass, on the other hand, allows unlimited travel on the National Highway network at a much lower cost.
Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari has said that the ministry is working on various issues related to toll plazas, such as public dissatisfaction and the frequency of toll gates. Sources say that even after the introduction of these passes, there will be no major loss of revenue for the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) in the coming years.
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