Starting Thursday, users will have to pay higher tolls on several stretches of national highways. The rate hike will have two components ? a fixed 3% increase and a flexible one, defined as 40% of the annualised change in Wholesale Price Index (WPI). The new toll structure ranges from Rs 25 to Rs 835, depending on the length and quality of the stretch and the type of vehicle.
The National Highways Authority of India has fixed the maximum usage fee of Rs 835 for a 103-km stretch of NH 7, which links Kanyakumari with Varanasi.
?The increase will be implemented on only 24 publicly-funded toll plazas from April 1, 2010. The charges on other such plazas may be hiked after September 1 this year,? a senior official in Road Transport & Highways told FE .
Out of the total national highway network of 70,548 km, government-funded toll plazas are spread on a total length of 8,500 km. There are 98 such plazas in the country, as per the ministry?s records.
In what would further increase the financial burden on national highway users, the government is also planning to raise toll charges on all national highways that are operated by concessionaires on build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis from September 1, 2010. Concessionaires are charging toll on 47 plazas spread on national highways with a total length of 2,800 km.
However, what could provide some relief is the fact that the increase on other national highways, whether public funded or operated on BOT (toll) by concessionaires, could not be higher than the rate given in the above formula.
The government has also created a provision for monthly passes for local personal vehicles. Such users can get a monthly pass at a concessional rate of Rs 175 per month, the notification stated. For other users, the pass would be available at a fee of Rs 800- 18,525,depending on the stretch and the vehicle. The changes have been made as per National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, 2008.