[locusjag]

Originally Posted by Sukanta73

Do I need to complete the KYC for Paytm to avail the fastag facility?

Without a completed KYC, any digital wallet in India (including Fastag) as per RBI rules, can only hold a limited amount of money (e.g., Axis Bank only allowed a maximum of Rs.500 for my non KYC compliant Fastag). You run the risk of having a limited wallet and quickly falling below the blacklist threshold on a prolonged highway run. Instead, get the KYC done, load the wallet with at least Rs.1000 and have a relaxed trip.

[Ithaca]

Originally Posted by Sukanta73

Do I need to complete the KYC for Paytm to avail the fastag facility?

I ordered the Fastag via ICICI mobile app linked to my brother’s account.
Received it in less than a week.
Since the account Kyc was already approved, my Fastag was delivered with ‘Active’ status.
Wallet limit ₹100,000

Paytm Kyc, if you have your documents, is easy to complete.
Hope this was helpful.

[binand]

Originally Posted by sridhu

And it is credible enough that a person trained to be skeptical about it fell for it.

Bah. Standard modus operandi of scammers, reported dozens of times even in the popular press.

More than anything, speaks volumes about the quality of "cybersecurity experts" that roam around here.

[NPV]

Recent experience at the Lanco Hoskote toll - passed through twice in a span of few hours.

Onward:there was signage and barricading to bifurcate right most lanes for Fastag, so kept to right. There was a security guy Manning the right most lane and he directed me to the adjacent lane. These lanes did not have a ln attendant inside the booth but a guy outside was managing the boom barrier. Couple of vehicles in front were let off despite displays of invalid tag and blacklisted tag, my cars tag didn't have any problems, so just passed through easily.

Return:again stuck to right side based on signage, took rightmost lane which moved a bit slow as a bus and truck took longer for the scan and then when my chance came, it was quick and easy

So, I think unless it's a holiday crowd, things are quite good for Fastag users at this toll.

*Just in case it was needed, I had fired up the ICICI etoll app (mobile data) and was prepared to show them that it was an active tag with sufficient balance

[atulsian]

Originally Posted by NPV

*Just in case it was needed, I had fired up the ICICI etoll app (mobile data) and was prepared to show them that it was an active tag with sufficient balance

Did the same thing on ORR. Kept the app open and at the Airport Exit tag was detected as blacklisted. I showed him the app and the status of the tag and I got free exit.

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by Sukanta73

When I recharge my paytm the amount credited in my paytm wallet. My doubt is how it transfer to fastag balance. It shows the initial balance as Rs 150.

As and when the toll is deducted from the Fastag wallet, the money will be transferred from your main wallet. This process is automatic, but ensure you have at least Rs 500 in the main wallet, apart from the Rs 150 in the fastag wallet when you start out.

Originally Posted by Sukanta73

Do I need to complete the KYC for Paytm to avail the fastag facility?

For the PayTM account KYC is necessary. If you have already done it, that is enough. No separate KYC for the Fastag wallet.

[mvadg]

Playing the "let's harass the Fastag users" game at the Electronic City toll gate. Two lanes free for the cash payers, while the Fastag lanes jammed with vehicles with delays exceeding 4 minutes on a Sunday afternoon. I've always found the people /person in charge of the BETL uncooperative and arrogant. This is a perfect example of how the BETL mismanages even the simplest directives to favor rule breakers.

[turboNath]

I completed my Madhya Pradesh drive two weeks ago. The route that I had taken was mostly through National Highways(Kolkata-Varanasi-Sidhi-Sanjay Dubri Tiger Reserve-Kolkata) and consequently I encountered around 11 toll plazas during the first leg.
I was quite surprised to find that all the toll plazas were fully equipped with the RFID reader in the lanes marked as 'No Cash/Fast tag Only'.

It was really impressive to drive up to a deserted toll plaza (somewhere in Jharkhand) at 2am in the night with a snoring toll collection agent and zoom past him after pausing for two seconds at the boom barrier !
Loved the experience! I did not face any issue with my Paytm Fastag at all.
The amounts were constantly getting deducted from my actual Paytm wallet while the fast tag account maintained a steady Rs.150 (security deposit).
However , I observed frequent latencies between the actual transaction at the toll plaza and my passbook updation.

[paragsachania]

Drove to Mangalore and back last weekend and have to say one thing about the motorists who still haven't bought these tags despite of so many extensions : You need to take a Bus and reach your destination.

• Overall, all 6 tolls were managed well with clear demarcation for Cash only and FASTag only lanes except the BC road toll where the right most lane is what we used to pass in both directions
  
  
• It is now mostly obvious that the right section is for FASTag and left for Cash and that helps
  
  
• Of all the plazas, the most chaotic was NBTL (Towards Tumkur) where long queues ensured people scouting for Cash or FASTag lanes at the last minute
  
  
• FASTag lanes moved quick, they were well managed with guards ensuring only tag holders are allowed into dedicated lanes
  
  
• Cash lanes had really long queues and I still do not fathom how even the most newer cars (that I saw in the queues) were not using the FASTag!!
  
  
• L&T toll booths of Kisirave and Shantigrama is iffy as always, especially if you have 2 RFID tags stuck on the windshield. On my friend's car, who had a FASTag as well as his company's RFID parking sticker, it failed to detect the right one till we covered one of the tags with bare hands and it worked! I remember the same booth had issues when I had BETL and FASTag stuck on my car's windscreen too. So seems like a known issue here
  
  
• There were kiosks after most of the booths selling FASTags but our junta was least bothered

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

So, is it just me, or is have others noticed that plazas, in KA, AP/TG & MH, in that order, give rise to most complaints?

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by BaCkSeAtDrIVeR

So, is it just me, or is have others noticed that plazas, in KA, AP/TG & MH, in that order, give rise to most complaints?

From my recent experience of driving to Gujarat and back, I will put MH on top of the list, especially the 3 tolls between Pune to Kolhapur (Anewadi, Taswade, Kini). The same state however manages few tolls on the Mumbai - Ahmedabad highway fantastically well.

[sachinpk]

Originally Posted by mvadg

Playing the "let's harass the Fastag users" game at the Electronic City toll gate.

My observation is that the worst toll booth management is at Attibele toll followed by the BETL toll. Don't know if the contractor is the same. The staff's arrogance is 'top class', but the performance of the 'local drivers and car owners' is worse.

Even today, I don't think BETL has correctly said how they will manage the cash paying drivers. Last Friday they bullied an Ola cab driver to pay Rs.100 as toll. This morning my company cab driver only could get a one-way ride ticket (Rs.50). Looks like the toll booth managers are trying to get as much as 'cash' possible.

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by sachinpk

My observation is that the worst toll booth management is at Attibele toll

In general, if there is a toll booth situated just around the entry of a major city, it has to have maximum number of lanes in one direction. The Attibele toll has lesser lanes if you compare that to entry points of many other bigger cities I have seen and hence it is super chaotic.

In fact, even in cases where lanes in one direction were proving dense, the toll authorities had moved the booths to a location ahead from its current one having them placed separately which would result in creation of extra lanes in one direction. Sadly, Attibele toll should have done this 3 years back. This is one toll that is always chaotic.

[//HB]

On a recent trip, I found it amusing that the Bhandup toll plaza (to exit or exit Mumbai via Thane), both times they asked me for cash saying they don't have Fastag yet on all the lanes. Smaller toll booths on the journey though did take the toll from the tag.

Mandatory FASTag rule relaxed for 65 toll plazas on National Highways citing high cash transactions

The Centre has exempted select toll plazas with high cash transactions to temporarily allow not more than 25% hybrid lanes accepting both cash and online transactions - for toll collection.

This comes after the National Highways Authority of India(NHAI), which is implementing the electronic toll collection (ETC) program, raised 'concerns' regarding high cash transactions at 65 identified toll plazas in the country.

Well - seems the machinery now acknowledges they weren't really ready for the cashless process.

Link to the article below - for those who want to go through it.

https://advisor.moneylife.in/article...ions/3321.html

[Newpunter]

Originally Posted by sachinpk

My observation is that the worst toll booth management is at Attibele toll followed by the BETL toll.

I thought I was the only one who thought this, but glad to see that other people agree too. Attibele is the absolute worst managed toll booth I have seen and Fastag doesn't seem to have improved things at all.