Govt Admits FASTags Are Increasing Wait Time At Toll; 1 Lakh FASTags Being Issued Every Day

FASTags have been made compulsory in the country to pay toll tax with one of the main reasons behind introducing so is to reduce the wait time at the toll booths.

The reports coming in indicate otherwise, the wait time at toll booths has actually increased instead of reducing!

The statistics from Central Toll Plaza Monitoring Systems indicates that the waiting time for vehicles has actually increased by 29%, despite the FASTag toll collection comprising 60% of the toll collection.

A Word from the Statistics!

The Central Toll Plaza Traffic Monitoring System is live in 488 toll plazas across the country. 

The average waiting time for a vehicle at a toll plaza is calculated by the time travelled by each vehicle to cross the toll plazas and is calculated within one km distance of the booths.

The reports suggest that the average waiting for vehicles was 7 minutes and 44 seconds, in the period between November 15, 2019 and December 14. This waiting time went up to nine minutes and 57 seconds between December 15, 2019 and January 14, 2020.

The report also stated that the annual average wait time at toll plazas has also been increased. In 2018, this was eight minutes and 16 seconds which shot up to nine minutes and 12 seconds last year (till November 2019).

What is the Officials Take on the Situation?

Sanjay Raut, MP, Shiv Sena in Rajya Sabha questioned Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road, Transport and Highways about the wait time at toll booths confirmed to the increase in wait time in certain lanes. 

In addition Gadkari said, “While the wait time of cars with FASTags has reduced significantly, the hybrid lanes, where both cash and FASTags are accepted are witnessing an increased wait time.”

FASTag Implementation gaining speed!

Gadkari said that till now 1.4 crore FASTags have been issued and the government is further adding 1 lakh FASTags on a daily basis.

The increase in FASTag users in India is rather considerable. According to the reports, it went from 19.5 lakh a day on 16 December to 24.78 lakh on 24 December. The number has only shot up since then.

What is the FASTag System?

FASTag is an electronic toll collection system, operated by the National Highway Authority of India. 

FASTag is a RFID (Radio Frequency Identification Device) sticker fixed to the windshield of the car enabled via barcode and is connected to the registration details of the car.

This enables automatic deduction of the toll tax and lets the vehicles pass without stopping thus decreasing the waiting and processing time.