Motorists, who were expecting a repeat of the chaos seen in October at toll gates immediately after the demonetisation of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes, were relieved to see smaller lines at collection plazas. Toll booths were operational on Saturday for the first time since November 9.
Card reader machines were available in 26 toll collection plazas and were used for amounts as small as Rs. 20 to facilitate cashless transactions.
All plazas are expected to be equipped with these machines by Saturday night.
Time consuming
“I swiped my debit card but it took longer than paying by cash,” said Kaushik S.C., who was returning to the city from Mumbai.
For those who insisted on paying with cash, most booths ran out of change within hours and staff were encouraging motorists to swipe their cards instead.
Officials of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) had been deputed at 30 toll booths in the State to monitor the situation.
A senior NHAI official said, “In some cases, customers handed over the Rs. 2000 note, but the concessionaires did not have the change to return. This led to arguments.”
Tolls can be paid with the old Rs. 500 notes as long as the amount being charged is Rs. 200 and above, the official pointed out.
Cash delays motorists
Toll plazas are turning into a nightmare for drivers of cabs, buses and trucks as they do not carry debit or credit cards.
K. Radhakrishna Holla, president, Bengaluru Tourist Taxi Owners Association, says, “Our drivers are not ready with bank cards or FASTag, which allows automatic payment of toll. Also, there is a restriction of Rs. 50,000 on withdrawals from Current Accounts, which we want increased to Rs. 2.5 lakh. This will help us provide cash to drivers.”
Truck operators are demanding that the waiver be extended till December 30 along with acceptance of old currency at petrol bunks.
“Either make payment of penalties, challans and entry fees at border checkposts online or allow us to withdraw adequate cash to pay the same,” said G.R. Shanmugappa, general secretary (South Zone), Motor Transporter’s Welfare Association.
Shortage of FASTag
In an effort to reduce time spent at toll booths, motorists were enquiring about FASTag stickers that enable a car to zip past toll gates. However, the tags are not available at toll booths across Karnataka.
FASTag is a radio frequency ID based toll collection mechanism, which is linked to a pre-paid account. They are valid for five years. Online recharge is possible. However, these tags are currently available only at two locations in Karnataka: at the office of the NHAI and a private bank.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) is trying to tie up with more banks to make FASTags freely available.
