FASTag mandatory on all state highways from April 1

Maharashtra mandates FASTag for toll collection on 22 state highways from April 1 to enhance transparency, reduce congestion, and ensure accurate revenue data.

Mumbai: The Maharashtra cabinet on Tuesday decided to make toll collection through radio frequency identification-enabled FASTag mandatory across all 22 state-run highways from April 1. The move is expected to bring transparency in toll collection, reduce congestion at toll plazas and save time and fuel for commuters, said a government statement. Motorists who do not have FASTag will have to pay double the toll fee, the statement noted.

While FASTag is already mandatory on national highways, from April 1, it will become mandatory on 13 highways built by the public works department and nine highways built by the Maharashtra state Road Development Corporation (HT PHOTO)

“The mechanism will enable us to get real-time information about collections by concessioners operating toll plazas,” said Manisha Mhaiskar, additional chief secretary, public works department. Real-time data will help the government implement the revenue sharing clause in agreements with concessioners once collections cross a threshold, she added.

MSRDC officials said the state government has been unable to implement the revenue sharing clause as toll collection data is routinely fudged by concessioners.

“The new mechanism will help us access actual toll collection figures, give us additional revenue and maintain roads well,” said an MSRDC official. Since tolls on state highways were collected in cash and the process was handled manually, many toll plazas had engaged anti-social elements who can be weeded out once FASTag becomes mandatory, the official added.

While FASTag is already mandatory on national highways, from April 1, it will become mandatory on 13 highways built by the public works department and nine highways built by the Maharashtra state Road Development Corporation, said officials from the transport department. The government has decided to tweak the Public Private Partnership Policy, 2014 to accommodate the change, the official added.

Fastag is a cashless electronic toll collection system that allows drivers to pay toll on highways without stopping. A passive RFID tag affixed on the windshield of vehicles enables automatic toll deduction from the customer’s linked account.