Delhi Traffic Police seeks relocation of 7 MCD toll plazas to ease congestion

Faced with daily traffic snarls on key arterial roads in east Delhi, the Delhi Traffic Police has written to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), urging it to relocate seven toll plazas to sites that do not impede the flow of traffic, at least two senior police officers aware of the matter said on Thursday

Faced with daily traffic snarls on key arterial roads in east Delhi, the Delhi Traffic Police has written to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), urging it to relocate seven toll plazas to sites that do not impede the flow of traffic, at least two senior police officers aware of the matter said on Thursday.

According to the MCD’s plan, 20 major border toll plazas in Delhi are set to become barrier-less ahead of the Capital’s winter pollution season in October. (HT Archive)

A letter in this regard was sent on June 30 by deputy commissioner of police (traffic) K Ramesh to the MCD’s deputy commissioner (toll tax).

In the letter, Ramesh proposed shifting the toll plazas at Delhi-Noida Direct (DND), Chilla border, Sabhapur border, Ghazipur Uttar Pradesh (UP) Gate, Main National Highway (NH)-24, NH-9 and Noida Mor-Dallupura Road, saying they have emerged as major bottlenecks in the eastern range, disrupting traffic on key corridors connecting Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.

Traffic police said the seven toll plazas witness heavy vehicular movement every day. Manual toll collection, shortage of toll collection staff, occupation of multiple lanes for toll collection, and delays in issuing monthly passes result in daily congestion and bumper-to-bumper queues, particularly during the morning and evening peak hours.

The traffic police also told the MCD that the Sabhapur toll collection point on the elevated Delhi-Dehradun Expressway has emerged as a major road safety concern.

“...the toll infrastructure has reduced the effective carriageway width, leading to bottlenecks and abrupt lane merging. Commercial vehicles halt on the left lane of the expressway for payment of MCD tax, resulting in sudden slowing down and queuing of vehicles, increasing the risk of rear-end collisions and endangering smooth traffic movement,” the letter, a copy of which is with HT, said.

Another traffic police officer said deploying personnel to regulate traffic on high-speed corridors is itself risky because of the speed of vehicles. The officer added that despite repeated directions, toll collection staff have done little to enforce lane discipline.

“As a result, drivers of commercial vehicles, especially taxis, stop abruptly in any lane to pay the toll. The average halting time is 15 to 20 seconds, but that is enough to slow vehicles behind them, eventually leading to bottlenecks. The situation worsens at night when hundreds of heavy commercial vehicles, including trucks and buses, queue up before the toll plazas to enter the city after no-entry restrictions are lifted,” said the second officer, who also requested anonymity.

Citing traffic congestion and road safety concerns, DCP Ramesh urged the MCD “to relocate the toll plazas to suitable locations where toll collection can be carried out without impeding the free flow of traffic.”

“Further, alternative modes of toll tax collection, including technology-based or non-stop collection systems, may also be explored to improve operational efficiency, alleviate traffic congestion, and enhance road safety,” he wrote.

To be sure, during last winter’s severe pollution episode, the Supreme Court directed the MCD to consider suspending toll collection at several entry points to reduce congestion and vehicular emissions caused by long queues of commercial vehicles waiting to enter Delhi.

According to the MCD’s plan, 20 major border toll plazas in Delhi are set to become barrier-less ahead of the Capital’s winter pollution season in October, while the remaining border points are expected to be covered by December 2026, an MCD official said.