New toll policy may let you pay per kilometre

The government has carried out a series of reforms to increase the participation of mid-sized EPC players in the tendering process of construction contracts, Ind-Ra said.

The Union government is working on a policy wherein you will have to pay toll per kilometre travelled, according to a report in Mint.

The existing “open toll policy” involves a fixed amount to be paid based on the length of the stretch under one project, typically 60-km. All travellers on toll roads currently pay the same fee irrespective of whether their destination is a few metres after the toll booth or if they cover the whole stretch.

But a “closed toll policy” being explored by the Road Transport and Highways Ministry will let commuters pay only for the distance travelled on highways where there is no access from all sides and expressways.

This policy will be first implemented on the new Eastern Peripheral Expressway covering Haryana and Uttar Pradesh that aims to reduce traffic in Delhi, a senior government official was quoted as saying.

Transport minister Nitin Gadkari had hinted at such a policy at a summit last week.

Toll rates are currently revised every year. The report added that the government already has a policy on how much to charge per kilometre and the fee will be calculated based on where the vehicle entered on the toll road and where it exited.

There is no clarification yet on how tabs will be kept on vehicles to check if they have overshot the distance mentioned when paying the toll.