The Indian government could offer you a simpler and more affordable choice if you like road excursions but find that constant toll booths and sporadic FASTag recharging tasks are a pain. In addition to potentially raising toll collection amounts, a plan to provide private car owners with annual and lifetime (15-year) FASTags is being examined. This might significantly streamline the toll-paying procedure on the nation’s national roads and motorways.
It has been suggested that private car owners be offered the choice of purchasing an annual permit for ₹3,000 or choosing to pay ₹30,000 upfront for a lifetime pass that would be good for 15 years. But only one car, for which the tag is attached to the registration number, will be eligible for any of these. The FASTag network will probably be connected to these passes.
What Are The Potential Benefits?
Such permits might have several advantages for the government and individual car owners if they are formally issued. Although toll collection is currently more efficient than it was before FASTag, persistent problems still exist. A FASTag’s imbalance frequently results in delays and interruptions. Rare claims of sudden withdrawals from the FASTag account have also been made. An annual or lifetime permit might further streamline traffic flow via toll booths and provide more transparency.
For private car owners who often travel on highways, it can also be significantly less expensive. The average toll a car owner must pay to go from Delhi to Shimla is around ₹400. For a return trip, this comes to ₹800. Similarly, it costs about ₹800 to go back and forth via National Highway 21 between Delhi and Jaipur. An annual pass will reduce this cost over 12 months by granting unlimited access to all tolls on national routes and motorways.
As the process becomes simpler and there may be an incentive for the general public to travel on highways more regularly, the government is also expected to witness an increase in the amount of tolls collected.
Who Is Not Eligible For A Yearly Pass?
The present FASTag approach, in which recharges are made only when necessary, should be more practical if you don’t frequently travel on highways. This implies that purchasing an annual or lifetime pass could not be financially advantageous unless you drive more than 1,000 km every two months.
