E-Paper
Fastag compulsion slows traffic during peak hours
On the second day of the FASTag compulsion being in force, slow moving traffic was observed at Talegaon toll plaza on the Pune-Mumbai expressway during peak hours
On the second day of the FASTag compulsion being in force, slow moving traffic was observed at Talegaon toll plaza on the Pune-Mumbai expressway during peak hours.
Traffic flow had gradually normalised at the Khed-Shivapur toll plaza on Wednesday. On Tuesday evening, lines of vehicles were observed in the FASTag lanes.
“At the Talegaon toll plaza on the Pune-Mumbai expressway, there are fewer number of lanes. That’s why the slow moving traffic issue was faced. Our team is on the ground and there were no major disputes. Commuters on this route are habitual with FASTag rules. So as compared to other highways there were few complaints on the first day,” said Amol Pawar, sub-inspector, highway police, Vadgaon.
Ninad Sonawane who travelled from Pune-Mumbai on Wednesday morning faced slow traffic movement in the FASTag lane at Talegaon toll plaza. “Lines in the FASTag lane defeat the purpose of the enforcement,” he said.
From Tuesday, vehicles without FASTags have to pay a double-toll penalty.
On the first day long lines of the vehicles were are at the Khed-Shivapur toll plaza.
“The situation was a lot better today. There were fewer arguments. Only 15% of vehicles argued about the double toll fees. A major challenge is related to recharging the tags. Not all commercial vehicles drivers carry smartphones. So there is dependency on vehicle owners to recharge. Several private vehicle owners don’t know how to recharge the FASTag,” said Amit Bhatia, regional head, west, Pune-Satara Toll Road Private Limited, Reliance Infrastructure. He manages the Khed-Shivapur and Anewadi toll plazas.
At Anewadi and Khed-Shivapur toll plazas, on Monday, 900 FASTags were sold (in 24 hours). On Wednesday, till 7 pm, 761 FASTags had been sold.
“FAStag traffic penetration has reached to 65% at Khed-Shivapur toll plaza,” Amit Bhatia said.
