Owners of private vehicles equipped with a working Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) will not incur any charges for traveling up to 20 kilometers per day on highways and expressways, according to a new notification.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Tuesday (September 10) updated the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, 2008.
The revised regulations, known as the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Amendment Rules, 2024, stipulate that fees will be applied based on the actual distance traveled beyond the 20-kilometer limit.
First 20 km free for GNSS vehicles
The notification specifies that drivers, vehicle owners, or responsible individuals using a mechanical vehicle (excluding National Permit vehicles) on the same section of a national highway, permanent bridge, bypass, or tunnel will be charged no user fee for the first 20 kilometers of their journey.
“A driver, owner or person in charge of a mechanical vehicle other than a National Permit vehicle who makes use of the same section of the national highway, permanent bridge, bypass or tunnel, as the case may be, shall be levied a zero-user fee upto 20 kilometres of a journey in each direction in a day under Global Navigation Satellite System based user fee collection system,” the notification said.
GNSS toll system pilot launched in July
In July, the road ministry announced the initial implementation of a GNSS-based toll collection system on select national highways as a pilot project, alongside the existing FASTag system.
Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari mentioned that pilot studies for the GNSS-based system have been conducted on the Bengaluru-Mysore section of NH-275 in Karnataka and the Panipat-Hisar section of NH-709 in Haryana.
Gadkari also noted that an international workshop for stakeholder consultation was held on June 25, 2024, and a global expression of interest (EOI) was called for broader industrial consultation on June 7, 2024, with submissions due by July 22, 2024.