Parliament Question: Long queues in the FASTag System

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2990 ANSWERED ON 18/03/2026 LONG QUEUES IN THE FASTAG SYSTEM 2990. DR. ASHOK KUMAR MITTAL: Will the Minister of ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS be pleased to state: a) reasons why toll rates have increased sharply despite incomplete highway stretches; (b) the steps being taken to address repeated public complaints about long queues and malfunctioning FASTag systems; (c) reasons why States are reporting unviable BOT/PPP projects, leading to rising fiscal stress; and (d) justification for high toll charges without transparent audits of concession agreements? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS (SHRI NITIN JAIRAM GADKARI) (a) The collection of user fee commences only upon issuance of the Completion Certificate/Provisional Completion Certificate and the safety report certifying that the concerned section of the National Highway is fit for operation. Accordingly, user fee is collected only for completed sections of the National Highway as per the provisions of National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, 2008. The user fee rates are revised annually linked to the wholesale price index in accordance with the applicable fee rules. (b) To ensure smooth traffic flow and reduce congestion at user fee plazas on National Highways, the Government introduced the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology through FASTag for making payment at fee plaza. The declaration of all lanes of fee plazas on National Highways as FASTag Lane of the fee plaza with effect from midnight of 15th/16th February, 2021, has resulted in seamless movement at user fee plazas, reduced waiting times, and alleviated congestion, thereby improving efficiency at fee plazas on National Highways. Impact Assessment conducted for the National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) Programme during 2024–25 indicates that the average time taken by a vehicle to cross a fee plaza under ETC Page 1 of 2operations is around 40 seconds, compared to 12.23 minutes per vehicle under the earlier manual tolling system, demonstrating a substantial improvement in traffic flow and reduction in congestion. Apart from this, congestion on fee plaza is also monitored through a GIS-based toll congestion monitoring solution. The Government has also established multiple grievance redressal mechanism for addressing user fee-related issues on National Highways. Complaints can be lodged through the National Highways 24×7 Toll-Free Helpline 1033, the dedicated email falsededuction@ihmcl.com, the respective FASTag issuer bank helplines, as well as through the RajmargYatra App. These mechanisms are effective, transparent, and easily accessible to road users. National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI), which provides the Central Clearing House (CCH) services of National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) Programme, has reported 17.66 lakh transactions chargeback were raised from January-2025 to December-2025 out of a total of 464 crore FASTag transactions in the same year which represents 0.03% of all Fastag transactions. Overall, these measures reflect continued efforts for efficient toll operations on National Highways with robust monitoring and transparent grievance redressal mechanisms. (c) Development of road projects under Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT)/Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode by State Governments is within the purview of the respective State Governments. Therefore, matters relating to viability of BOT/PPP projects implemented by States are dealt with by the concerned State Governments. Government is promoting the adoption of BOT/Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) projects in the National Highways sector and a number of BOT & HAM projects have been taken up and completed. (d) The extant National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, 2008 under NH Act, 1956 was formulated to ensure transparency, with a uniform methodology for calculating user fees across the country. The base rates for the respective categories of vehicles are uniformly applicable at all NH Fee Plaza across the country. The user fee rates for different categories of projects are calculated based on the prescribed methodology. Further, Concession Agreements clearly define the financial and operational framework of the projects. Toll charges are fixed by Government based on NH Fee Rules, 2008 and are applicable uniformly across all NH projects. ***** Page 2 of 2