Move aimed to attract funds for two-lane roads
The government's plan to start tolling two-lane stretches across the golden quadrilateral (GQ) is seen as a move to attract investors to two-lane roads, the government is making elaborate plans to improve toll collection to fund its ambitious plan for modernising 40,000 km of highways by 2015. The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) collects about Rs 1,200 crore a year as toll with nearly 98% of the 5,846-km-long GQ, that links the four metros, ready.

``We plan to begin partial tolling on the segments that are ready. Tolling is anyway done for a 50 to 60-km stretch. So, the charge will be proportional to the road ready on that stretch. NHAI has been asked to work out this plan at the earliest,'' said Dutt. But there are leakages along most of GQ which the government is trying to check. So, instead of allowing ex-servicemen to collect toll on NHAI's behalf for a fee, the government will now bid out toll plazas on the operate, maintain and transfer basis for which a model concessionaire agreement is being finalised. The proposal was cleared by an inter-ministerial panel only last week. At present, NHAI collects toll on nearly 4,000 km of GQ which includes stretches like Ludhiana-Jalandhar and a bulk of the Mumbai-Delhi highway.

``The ease of toll collection would be an important factor. People applying to run toll plazas would have to offer latest electronic techniques that would reduce time at the toll gate to the minimum,'' said Dutt. An electronic toll collection gadget could be made available that would allow highway users to whiz past toll gates. If pre-paid, the amount would be deducted and if post-paid, the amount would be billed later to the user.