- NHAI hikes toll charges with effect from June 1
- Prepares to levy charges on Nidaghatta-Mysuru section
Mysore/Mysuru: The toll charges for a section of the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway have been quietly increased by the National Highways Authority of India (NHA), with rates going up by as much as 22 percent.
The toll has been increased for all types of vehicles and comes at a time when a new Government is in place. Before coming to power, the Congress party led many protests against the ‘steep’ toll charges.
The hike, effective from June 1, came as a rude shock for the commuters who noticed that the toll deducted from their FASTag accounts was higher than the previous charges. The one-way fare for cars, vans, and jeeps has now been raised from Rs. 135 to Rs. 165, resulting in an increase of Rs. 30.
Previously, the toll fee for a single trip on the Expressway for cars was Rs. 135 but it has now been raised to Rs. 165. Similarly, for a round trip on the same day, the charges have increased from Rs. 205 to Rs. 250. As the toll charges have gone up, the monthly pass rates too have been increased (see table).
Light commercial vehicles and mini-buses will now have to pay Rs. 270 instead of Rs. 220 for a one-way journey and Rs. 405 (previously Rs. 330) for a return trip. Buses and trucks will be charged Rs. 565 for a single journey and Rs. 850 for a round trip.
Likewise, heavy construction equipment or earth-moving equipment or 4 to 6 axle vehicles have to pay Rs. 885 for a single trip and Rs. 1,330 for a round trip on the same day. Oversized vehicles (7 or more axles) have to pay Rs. 1,080 for a single journey and Rs. 1,620 for the same day return trip.
According to the NHAI, the hike is a regular procedure tied to the Wholesale Price Index (WPI). Initially, the NHAI had planned to implement the toll hike from Apr. 1 as part of the annual revision of toll prices across the country but was kept on hold due to protests and public outrage. The NHAI has displayed the revised fee on the toll plaza signage boards near the toll plaza to inform the public.
The revised toll is being collected at the Kanaminike and Sheshagirihalli toll plazas and sources said that the toll charges for the Nidaghatta-Mysuru section will be announced soon. Toll collection on that section is expected to begin on July 1.
NEW TOLL CHARGES
| Vehicle type | Single trip | Round trip within 24 hours | Monthly pass – restricted to 50 single trips |
| Cars, vans, jeeps | Rs. 165 | Rs. 250 | Rs. 5,575 |
| LCV/LGV/minibus | Rs. 270 | Rs. 405 | Rs. 9,000 |
| Trucks/buses – two axles | Rs. 565 | Rs. 850 | Rs. 18,860 |
| Three-axle commercial vehicles | Rs. 615 | Rs. 925 | Rs. 20,575 |
| Heavy construction equipment, earth-movers – 4 to 6 axles | Rs. 885 | Rs. 1,330 | Rs. 29,580 |
| Oversized vehicles – 7 or more axles | Rs. 1,080 | Rs. 1,620 | Rs. 36,010 |
The Journey time is reduced to 2:15 minutes if driven at optimum speeds of 80-100kmph , there will be savings in fuel and reduction in pollution due to constant braking and acceleration as there will be less back to back vehicles traffic . The amount saved on fuel can be paid as toll.Further if people move on to electric cars then cost of running will be 1.2 to 1.4 rupees per kilometer.When the resting area is ready then there will be electric charging station. When the Mysuru Kushalnagar expressway is built add a charging station near pashchimvahini as vehicles can charge midway on the way to Coorg
Toll of Rs. 165 is just for the 56 km stretch from Nice Road Junction to Niddaghatta. Once the remaining stretch 61 kms form Nidaghatta to Mysore is completed, toll would increase further. Going by existing rate, the final toll might well be nearly Rs. 300 or more.
@ Sanjay Kini – I don’t buy into this argument that because the new expressway saves time and fuel, people should accept the toll.
Whether the road is an expressway or any other normal road, they must be of good quality. PERIOD. Road is one the most basic infrastructures that government needs to provide to it’s citizens. What are we paying taxes for?
I am observing a trend in our country. Authorities will initially build a bad road. Later they will claim that the road will converted to highway/expressway/4/6 lane. And under these pretexts they start charging tolls. My point is why the can’t the roads be of best quality in first place itself. It is the right of citizens to have good roads irrespective of whether it is an expressway or a street in front of their house.
Indians are always conservative in their spending unlike the west and our government is also run that way while spending for infrastructure.we need to spend a lot of money to modernise our defence forces give them better facilities because of whom we are leading a peaceful life in independent India.Why is the government conservative in spending on infrastructure is that we should learn a lasso from our neighbour china , which built the Hong Kong -Zhuhai – Macao bridge over sea ,a 55 km bridge at a cost of $19 billion dollars and it was estimated that 21000 vehicles will use the bridge and pay toll .what happened only 5000 vehicles used the bridge every day that to in peak holiday season, rest of the time only 2100 vehicles used the bridge and china is reaping under its own debt.For example in India the national highway 209 /connecting Bengaluru to dinidugal via Kanakapura , halaguru, sivanasamudram is being converted into a four lane highway from a two lane road , toll will be collected and if traffic increases in few years it might be converted into a expressway but the point is road is earning money and the debt will be repaid before expansion in future.if Mr.Simha request Mr.Gadkari then they can widen the road from halaguru to mysuru via malavalli and bannur and this road will be an alternate road for tourist to mysuru incase there are protests in Mandya and the expressway is blocked in future.Also this road can be used by two wheelers, three wheelers and tractors who want to reach mysuru.Moody’s recently flagged off about te debt of Indian government so India should be careful not to become like our neighbours srilanka and Pakistan .That according to me is why we pay for better infrastructure in spite of paying taxes.
*lesson from china
Hey Sanjay Kini
Looking at your last long reply, it is my impression that you should learn how to format a paragraph, where to use capital letters, and above all, how to focus on issues without cluttering them with figures.
Your opening sentence runs long, and , is a confused product of your dimwitted brain. Why bring in defence forces modernisation to justify the hike in the poll charges? This poll charge is hypothecated-that is exclusively meant towards the costb of maintenance of this expressway.
There are irrelevant examples like :”Hong Kong -Zhuhai – Macao bridge ” where you say China is “reaping under its own debt”. First, when you refer to a country use the uppercase letter, in this case it is: China. The word ” reaping ” should have been ” creaking”, when you use the word “under”.
Your stupidity in rebutting the poster above your last post, means you do not understand the position of Hong Kong as a a region of China, which it got back in 1997, from Britain, as per the old colonial agreement. Hong Kong is semi autonomous, because of that reason,and is valuable to China as a region which thrives on its private enterprise acumen. Hence, China is prepared to spend on the infrastructure projects related to Hong Kong, not expecting a break-even position.
Unlike India, China is an economic and military superpower. It can afford to spend what you have argued on a commercially and finacially thriving region like Hong Kong, the like of which, you will not find in India. These are the basics your small brain has failed to grasp.
Finally, learn when you should use “whom”, and when it should be “who”.
Hey Sanjay Kini
Looking at your last long reply, it is my impression that you should learn how to format a paragraph, where to use capital letters, and above all, how to focus on issues without cluttering them with figures.
Your opening sentence runs long, and , is a confused product of your dimwitted brain. Why bring in defence forces modernisation to justify the hike in the poll charges? This poll charge is hypothecated-that is exclusively meant towards the costb of maintenance of this expressway.
There are irrelevant examples like :”Hong Kong -Zhuhai – Macao bridge ” where you say China is “reaping under its own debt”. First, when you refer to a country use the uppercase letter, in this case it is: China. The word ” reaping ” should have been ” creaking”, when you use the word “under”.
Your stupidity in rebutting the poster above your last post, means you do not understand the position of Hong Kong as a a region of China, which it got back in 1997, from Britain, as per the old colonial agreement. Hong Kong is semi autonomous, because of that reason,and is valuable to China as a region which thrives on its private enterprise acumen. Hence, China is prepared to spend on the infrastructure projects related to Hong Kong, not expecting a break-even position.
Unlike India, China is an economic and military superpower. It can afford to spend what you have argued on a commercially and finacially thriving region like Hong Kong, the like of which, you will not find in India. These are the basics your small brain has failed to grasp.
@ Sanjay Kini – I agree that Indian public and government are conservative when it comes to spending. But that is not the prime reason for poor infrastructure in India. The main reason is corruption, using poor quality materials, not using scientific methods of construction, delay in executing the projects and thereby cost escalation, etc. Didn’t we just saw a bridge collapsing twice within a year in Bihar? Tax payers’ money literally flowed down the river Ganga! Or just look at the state of Mysore-Nanjungud road for which people pay toll.
WORK FROM HOME SAVES A LOT OF MONEY SO THEY SHOULD PAY MORE TOLL CHARGES.
You posters got it wrong.
The problem with India is that it tries to ape the US, assuming that it will progress as that country did, without examining the solutions tailored to its own needs.
The US population, even after the mass immigration in recent years is just 25% of Indian population with a larger land mass.
India, simply cannot solve its yransport problems by contructing more Highways in a situation that its population is increasing fast, which does mean the only mass trasit systems are appropriate. This Highway expansion isa mistake, as even an idiot would have known that it will become a large car park with cars coming in at various points joining in the already large mass of cars. The Highway is easily overrun with congestion, defeating the very purpose of its existence.
The thinking should have been expanding the rail track numbers between Mysore and Bamgalore, with 2 tracks reserved for fast non-stop trains at ceratiun times of the days and minimal stop trains scheduled in between. That is not a complete solution, but would have taken commuters off from some cars.
In any case, the problem is the massive population of India, and fastly iunderdeveloped towns which necessitates people looking for work in nearby big cities.
The healthcare is similarly copied from the US with private hospitals fleecing patients, where the poor suffers.
Even with good quality construction materials,given the intense wear and tear hoisted on to the roads by the sheer volume of car traffic, things will not be better. Far too many people, far too many vehicles and hence far too many challenges in this country.
Hence, the largest number of migrants knowcking at the Western countries wanting to ccome in are Indians.