New Delhi : Launching an electronic toll collection (ETC) system for the Delhi-Mumbai highway, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari Friday said such a facility will be extended to as many as 350 plazas by the end of next year.
“In the coming time, this system will get revolutionalised. This is our step towards a digital India. I have given orders that before March, there should be over 350 such tolls,” the minister said at an event here to launch the project.
“This will help in savings of as much as Rs.27,000 crore due to delays caused at tolls and Rs.7,000 crore worth of fuel will be saved,” Gadkari said.
“We have currently tied up with two banks — Axis Bank and ICICI Bank. More can also come,” Gadkari said, even as officials explained that the logistics for the Delhi-Mumbai toll plaza had been set up in Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra.
Around Rs.1,200 crore of fuel will be saved annually on the Delhi-Mumbai highway after the installation of the ETC system.
At present, some problems are being faced while collecting toll. People often complain of lack of uniform rates on various parts of the same highway and there are constant complaints of overcharging.
The minister added that there are 18 toll plazas on the Delhi-Mumbai highway. It takes around 10 minutes minimum for the vehicles to pay the levy which results in a loss of at least three hours’ time during the total journey.