[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by mjothi

Should NH be charged Toll? A strict NO.

Keep it separate. Toll roads are for those who can afford. And normal NH should be for others. But, our govt. forgets that and turns all NH to a Toll road.

They cannot "force" the citizens to use ONLY toll roads. So, the road tax is only for state roads is it?

Already the commodities are rising north. And if govt. implement this fully, then imagine.

Sir,

You are completely mistaken. Most "localites" don't pay toll. Vehicles in the catchment region almost never pay toll (esp the rural areas). Atleast so in Delhi!

And honestly, I am now a bit confused by this thread. Except NH22 or NH21 (both hill routes), I don't know a single NH around Delhi which doesnt charge tolls.

Sumit bhai - you are from Chandigarh - tell me one NH near CHD which doesn't charge toll. I shall take it from next time onward !!

[akshay4587]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

I will happily pay every single time. Provided they maintain standards like GVK has done in Jaipur-Kishangarh, or NH2, or NH1 Ambala-Karnal.

I only wish they had a tag which I could fit on my car and pay without waiting

looks like you havent driven on this stretch recently
so much for this 6 lane construction
and not to mention 78 bucks of toll
and also no one mentioned about those long queues that make you lose time.
Recently i read in a newspaper that punjab administration has decided,if anyone has to wait for more than 2-3 mins at toll plaza,he wouldnt be charged,now i wonder if this is applicable in case of long queues?

[mercedised]

Recently i did a tour of Rajasthan, and i had to pay a total toll of nearly 500rs only in rajasthan. the roads were good but they definetly didnot worth 27rs,50rs tolls for 2 lanes.

[soccer]

I totally disagree to pay any toll. We all pay exorbitantly high road tax at the time of purchase of our cars. In some cases lifetime road tax is paid , which ads up to the cost of the vehicle considerably. Now, we all know what happens this money. Each new government provides Rice at 1 Re and free colour TVs to the people as rewards for seeking their votes.

I think if this amount is used exclusively for road building then we may have had the best roads in the world. Don't forget the density of vehicles on Indian roads is one of the highest and considering the quantum of revenue received as Road Tax our roads should have been super smooth.

Collecting Toll at these Booths at regular intervals on most highways just adds to the delay caused and increases travel time. In some of these toll booth there are long Ques and eons seem to pass by the time you approach the counter.

There are about 13 such toll booths between Chennai and Vizag and considering that you lose 5 mins. in each of them you have lost about an hour, if not more. Added to that it adds upto about 600 Rs.

Even after paying huge amounts how many of us can honestly agree that these roads are worth driving on. Its a different thing that we have no other choice.

All toll booths should be removed immediately and the resposibility of building an maintaining these Roads should rest entirely with the govt. and not with the private contractors. These are nothing but a pain in the a***.

God bless.....

[laluks]

I would not have an issue in paying up if
1) The roads are maintained well
2) Toll Booths are evenly located say 60Km apart
3) Efficient handling of toll collection and less wait times at booths
4) may be one in every 3 to 4 toll booth could be made with some restrooms, etc..to take a break if need be.
5) Common rational of cost of rs/km across the country.

I know this is all wishful thinking, but atleast if we are assured of good roads, then even with a heavy heart let it be!

[roadie_swift]

I once had huge issues about paying toll, and used to seethe with the same kind of righteous indignation shown here about having paid through the nose for road tax etc etc.

Then I happened to find myself lurching from potvalley to potvalley on the 20 km stretch from Kanpur to Ghatampur - having passed 20 milestones, my odo was actually showing a reading of 33 km traveled, due to the serpentine way I had to drive to avoid breaking my suspension.

I have since approached every single toll booth with a smile on my face - I don't know what happens to my road tax / vehicle tax money, but I won't mind paying toll just to avoid the Ghatampur torture - Incidentally, that travesty of a National Highway is named NH 86.

[Mr_Bean]

I went on a trip to Pondichery last weekend, the ECR stretch from Mammalapuram to Pondichery is hopeless, bad roads, very difficult to overtake, dangerous to drive at night.

[brain.ram]

Bangalore guys are going to pay more money on tolls, if they are moving out for trips. New toll gate is coming up in Attibelle (towards hosur). They are planning to charge Rs 20 till Attibelle on the existing NH ( if you are taking the new flyover to EC then Rs 30 will be charged for cars).

Road widening activity is happening on Kolar highway as well. Surely they will be putting a toll gate on that road as well.

Towards Pune also already toll is implemented. So if you want to go out of bangalore you have to pay toll.

I think only Mysore road and Hyd NH is exempted from toll now.

I usually take the Hosur road towards Kerala. Now the Toll is 180 rs till CBTR. But the Road is fully 4 lane and well maintained. It saves almost 1.5 hrs of travel.

[trtraj]

Originally Posted by ikoneer

it has also so many small lanes/roads joining the highway due to which there are so many accidents. There are no proper signboards on entry/exit points as well.

somehow i feel we are not ready for these express highways. look at large number of accidents, lack of safety, irrationale driving etc.

It seems that Government has to make road sense as mandatory subject in school level itself.

I see lot of trucks coming in wrong way (with high beam in night time) which eventually became a root cause for one or other accident.

However, I hope at least there will not be any speed breakers as like in Bangalore-Mysore State highway ... Just too many of them

[mail4ajo]

Whats happened to the 8% road tax they collected when I got my car? Or was it only for the potholed Chennai roads and choked lanes?

[SunilM]

I for one would not mind shelling out toll if highways/expressways are well maintained as they are in Gujarat! Ahmedabad-Baroda expressway is arguably the best stretch of road in the country, same for most other roads.

Don't believe me? Ask NC and Sam or go through YetiBlog®

[anjan_c2007]

About the 16 lane toll booth at the DL-Haryana border (Gurgaon) I was told a behind the scene story by a somewhat influential person here in Gurgaon. He said that there are 150,000 cars passing this toll booth every day. Each one is charged Rs 21 for one way. The Build Own Operate and Transfer system has provided the lessee M/s D.S. Constructions (the 8 lane highway maker) a 25 year lease by the NHAI.The lessee has entrusted the job of toll collection to an ex-armyman's company.
One of the clauses in the contract is that if there is a huge jam of say nearly 200 cars in a single toll lane, the toll collector must release all the cars without collecting any toll tax to avoid jams and delays. But this is never followed.
The categories exempt are the ambulances, VIP cars and motorcades and govt vehicles, commercial vehicles carrying food products, defence vehicles and some other categories that I may have missed here. Another category is the NHAI owned vehicles. So it is amusing that many trucks have got NHAI painted on their bodyline, though these have some other private ownership.
Coming to the tag lane (where a tag is provided for monthly toll payment, an option used by daily commuters and taxi owners too), there are many who when in a hurry move into the tag lane because this is a faster lane. If detected without the wanted tag, they are charged Rs 21 but not fined.The person manning this lane is under moral pressure not to waste time and argue with such users because there are cars following the non tag car who all may be unnecessarily be delayed. So when in a hurry the tag lane is handy to move out at a brisk pace.
I am sure many locals may be aware of such manoeuvrings on the toll lanes by users and the operators.

[getsurya]

However, I hope at least there will not be any speed breakers as like in Bangalore-Mysore State highway ... Just too many of them

Absolutely! Too many of them without proper identification marks especially during the night time drives.

If Govt, maintains the roads with proper conditions and strict rules then paying the toll is ok to some extent. However, if it is yet another way of looting the tax payers(us) then I am not happy with it.

[Cyrus43]

I dont mind paying tolls if I get the good roads we deserve. That is precisely why I always take the Expressway. I think the toll paid is worth the time saved and driving pleasure received.

[Aroy]

I always wonder where all the taxes collected from motor vehicles go
- Fuel Surcharge
- Registration Fees
- Road Tax

All these are taxes were started for building and maintaining roads & highways. Now it seems that these charges are just another source of revenue for the Government, and road users have to pay for the roads they travel on. I would suggest that

- Registration fees go back to what was charged 20 years ago - 2K or less
- Road tax be collected annually as before, to be used for local roads only
- Fuel surcharge collected for road sector be discontinued

We would all be riches by at least 50k and at times by 2L+. Then let those who use the highways pay. That to me is a more rational tax policy.