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Indian Road Ministry adopts new technology standard for electronic toll collection

Toll booths on National Highways will adopt the passive RFID technology standard – ISO 18000 6C — for electronic toll collection (ETC) system, based on the recommendation of a committee set up for this purpose, headed by Mr Nandan Nilekani, Chairman, Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). The recommendations have been adopted by the Highways Ministry. In the ETC system, vehicles will have tags on their windscreens – where amounts can be pre-loaded (just like prepaid SIM cards for phones) – and when the vehicles pass through NH toll lanes with tag readers, the toll amount would automatically get debited. This will pave the way for setting up of ETC system across the NH network.

There are about 147 toll booths on the NH network, out of which about 100-odd are operated by NHAI and remaining by private developers. Each reader will cost about Rs 2 lakh. Each NH toll booth will have at least two lanes (one on each side) with tag readers. NHAI or the operating concessionaire is likely to bear the cost of setting up tag readers at its toll plazas though the Union Highway Minister, Mr Kamal Nath, said he expects the system to be “self-financing”. It is also not clear as to who will fund the clearing house operator. At present, two NH stretches have ETC options –Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway and Bangalore-Electronic City elevated highway.