The central government plans to implement new technologies, including GPS-based toll collection systems, by March next year to remove existing toll plazas on national highways. This information was provided by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday.
During the fiscal year 2018-19, the average waiting time for vehicles at toll plazas was 8 minutes. With the introduction of FASTag during the fiscal years 2020-21 and 2021-22, the average waiting time for vehicles reduced to 47 seconds.
However, in some places, especially near cities and densely populated towns, there has been a significant improvement in waiting times. Nevertheless, during peak hours, there is still some delay at toll plazas.
During this period, Gadkari stated that before the implementation of the code of conduct for the upcoming general elections next year, the government will invite tenders for road projects under the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model for highways less than 1,000 kilometers in length, with an estimated value of 1.5-2 lakh crores.
The general elections are scheduled to take place in April-May 2024.
He said, "Moving forward, we will prefer the Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvITs) model for highway construction."
InvITs, or Infrastructure Investment Trusts, are investment instruments designed to pool funds from investors for the purpose of investing in income-generating infrastructure assets. These trusts are structured to provide cash flow over time through investments in such assets.
By Kuldeep
