Page 35 - TrafficInfraTech Dec-Jan 2019

TOLLING

possible within permissible downtime. Due to these losses every year,
So, the vision for the future the Transport Associations make
tolling in India shall be based on representations to the authorities
cooperation between all stakeholders for a toll-free road network. Due to
induced by policy changes, the legal implications of the existing
implementation and enforcement. Concessionaire Agreements and the
growth of Public-Private Partnerships
How has the FASTag programme in the infrastructure sector, such
evolved overtime in terms of technologies demands cannot be implemented.
deployed, solving transactional problems So, toll plazas are here to stay, and
faced by users, banks and concessionaire? we must come out with a solution
What are the key requirements to which will ensure that there are It is agreed that ETC
meet the vision of plaza free tolling? based technologies are a
no stoppages at the toll plaza.
Denny Thomas: NPCI launched So, if we look at from a technology necessary way forward
FASTag programme in December 2016 perspective, there are various ETC to handle congestion
and has been successfully running technologies existing apart from RFID. and enhancing digital
after a few initial hiccups. The program We have the smart-card based solution payment modes. The
has not been in the limelight but has where you need to have an onboard toll plazas payment
grown significantly from 30,000 daily unit wherein the reader will read from
transactions in December 18 to 7 lakhs the onboard unit and you just pass through ETC mode has
daily transactions now. Unfortunately not through. There is license number plate come to almost 25% of
much of the information has come out in recognition, GPS based or proximity- total collection. However,
public domain and hence a lot of confusion based solutions which are coming in reconciliation between
with regards to the program performance. right now. The whole point is that if various stakeholders
As per a study conducted by IIM you look at from an implementation was also recognised
Calcutta along with TCI, the average perspective, technology is not a as a key difficulty for
wait time of the commuter in a toll plaza challenge; it is always the operational
is approximately 10 minutes. Because issues that pose the challenge. Before concessionaires.
of the delay or the 10-minute wait, the addressing the technology, we have to Neeraj Sanghi
loss to the economy is Rs 432bn which understand the operational challenges
is a huge amount wasted. And because pertaining to the toll plaza operator, the
of the idle time, there is an additional Rs user and the authority and address them. as there was still shortage of cash. None
960bn loss in terms of fuel wastage. India We went live on December 3, of the players in the ecosystem, be it the
cannot continue to live with such losses, 2016, the day when tolling was started concessionaire, be it the acquiring bank,
and the only way to stop it at the toll again after demonetisation. The NETC be it the issuer banks, were ready to cope
plaza is to adopt electronic toll collection. transaction just doubled within a month up with these kinds of challenges. To give

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