Team-BHP - FASTag: All you need to know about procuring & using it!

Quote:

Originally Posted by dass (Post 4219469)

This may have already been answered here, but checking again to see if there are any new updates to share. Which is the best place to stick the tag? I know the FAQ document mentions that is should be stuck at the top middle of the wind screen, but wondering if there are any other places which are equally effective and more importantly which are the places it just should not be stuck.

Stick this on the right hand side of your car's IRVM. Almost at the same level as the mirror.

Due to a small crack on my windscreen, what I have done is pasted Transparent tape on both sides of the tag and cut the tape exactly in the shape of the Tag and then pasted this "laminated" tag with transparent tape.

This way, if I replace windscreen in future, I don't need to bother about getting another tag and linking it to my existing account, for you know that many have been unsuccessful in removing the Tag without damaging it.

I had recently been double charged at Hoskote toll booth but they have reversed it on their own without me having to raise a complaint. Also I realised on a drive to tirupathi that all three toll booths - Hoskote, Mulbagal and Nangli have a dedicated FasTag lane and also the latter two have a well laid system along with an exit lane for non fastag vehicles which enter the lane. Since we were in the SX4 without the tag, I couldn't experiment how well the system worked.

Quote:

Originally Posted by paragsachania (Post 4219491)

what I have done is pasted Transparent tape on both sides of the tag and cut the tape exactly in the shape of the Tag and then pasted this "laminated" tag with transparent tape.

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Thanks Parag Bhai, I'll probably stick this towards the right.

Why did you have to paste a transaparent tape on both sides of the Tag? you could have just stuck the tap on the backside and pasted it to the windscreen and it could have been removed easily as well right? Any other reason why you did what you did?

Quote:

Originally Posted by dass (Post 4219526)

Why did you have to paste a transaparent tape on both sides of the Tag? you could have just stuck the tap on the backside and pasted it to the windscreen and it could have been removed easily as well right? Any other reason why you did what you did?

For the Tag to be visible, as a Tag, when that Guard standing at the FASTag lane has to see that and slide the barrier to allow me to pass :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by itwasntme (Post 4218967)

Got into a stand-off at the BLR airport (KIAL) toll last Thursday around 2200. They had cordoned off the FASTag lane and were denying entry EVEN to tagged cars, because it seems the airport cabbies force their way in regardless of the security guard etc.

I refused to budge and called for the supervisor who came very unwillingly to the outer marker. Told him I will immediately complain to NHAI; he very grumpily called in my license number to the control room, checked it was a valid tag and then let me through.

Silly way to deal with the crowd! They need to put in a better way to deal with these peak times and the cabbie mafia.

BIAL toll is the worst in Karnataka. They either say it's not working or blame on ICICI. I had major fight with the toll manager with this regards. Wrote to NHAI via PG Portal and it seemed to have worked. I didn't know that they are back to square one :Frustrati.

My parents were regular users of FASTag at the Manesar toll on NH8; after spending a considerable time of energy and patience coordinating with the several people who came and left at ICICI, they finally got it working last year.

A couple of months or so back, their account suddenly started going in the negative; despite them maintaining the necessary balance, assuming their usage.

Turns out, ICICI is no longer associated with the Manesar. So, they were paying full charge (Rs. 60/trip) rather than the ~ Rs. 15 that works out if you have Manesar toll tag.

Absolutely no communication from ICICI, FASTag.

Since we don't regularly need or use a toll tag for other tolls, we decided to get the FASTag cancelled; getting the money in the account back into our accounts has been another battle.

I'm really surprised that it is banks that operate the whole initiative and that is it not a pan-India standalone entity. Disappointing that something with so much potential has such chinks.

Apparently, IDFC will be managing the Manesar toll now.

However, I am surprised at the low take-up of FASTag in BLR. I was in the adjoining queue in my company cab for ~12 minutes and not one tagged vehicle passed by.

Does anyone know why at least some BLR cabbies are not using it? Won't it be a win-win for them AND their passengers especially at peak times?

Quote:

Originally Posted by itwasntme (Post 4221114)

Does anyone know why at least some BLR cabbies are not using it? Won't it be a win-win for them AND their passengers especially at peak times?

When I was at the toll booth office to collect my FASTag, there was one Gentleman filling the form here to get his monthly pass submitting relevant documents.

Not sure but it could be a case where cabbies get monthly pass here (or prefer) and hence no FASTag?

Or it could also be a case that they are least bothered about Airport toll only and not the other NHAI tolls which anyway won't bother them much in terms of waiting times as these are Airport Taxis and not Intra City cabs?

On the contrary, I have seen enough company buses and Cabs use BETL RFID (not FASTag) everyone I drive to work at Electronics City but none of App based cabs have these tags.

Quote:

Originally Posted by paragsachania (Post 4221118)

Not sure but it could be a case where cabbies get monthly pass here (or prefer) and hence no FASTag?

Good point Parag.

Passes:
I understand passes can also be integrated into the FASTag system but concessionaire needs to work closely with NHAI & Indian Highways Management Company Limited (IHMCL).

Cabbies:
Have sometimes seen cabbies hand over or show a receipt, wonder if that is the monthly pass?

Thank you very much fastag!! I drove from chennai to bangalore yesterday morning and all the fastags worked fine, had to pay cash at only one toll and that was because a truck in line ahead of me stalled right in the toll lane.

Thank you even more Axis Bank for waking me up at 3 AM with several "your fastag has been debited Rs 85 at the so and so toll" sms notifications. So much better than an alarm clock To have your phone pinging non stop. If your sms gateway has constipation to this extent please give it some virtual churan asap.

Edit - and wake me up less than an hour later with one more toll debit sms. Now I'm thoroughly awake at 4.39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hserus (Post 4224504)

Thank you even more Axis Bank for waking me up at 3 AM with several "your fastag has been debited Rs 85 at the so and so toll" sms notifications.

Pretty much every Android phone I have seen has some sort of DnD option (and I'm assuming iPhones have something similar too, if you are on that side of the court). In my case I have set DnD for 10-6 weeknights (Sunday night to Thursday night) and throughout weekends (Friday night to Sunday night). When DnD is on, only calls from numbers in my address book and alarms I set are allowed to make any sort of noise; nothing else.

I did a round trip over the weekend to Kerala returning late last night. The notification SMSes were coming throughout the night but none bothered me.

A quick question though: The total toll I should have paid is Rs. 1070. Due to a snafu my tag account had only Rs. 1040 (ie, I was Rs. 30 short). I have recharged it a few minutes ago, but does anyone know what the consequences of passing through toll booths without sufficient balance are? I hope they don't disable my tag or any such thing.

I traveled from Bangalore to Chennai and back over the weekend and the Fastag worked flawlessly at all the tolls. There was a couple of toll booths on the way back which also had cash paying vehicles in the Fastag lane however it was still faster and I didnt need to bother about change. Krishnagiri and Attibele was jam packed, maybe a km long queue so invariably there were non-Fastag cars in the line who were diverted to other lines.