Now Concessional Toll Rate For Electric Vehicles !!

Posted by SinceIndependence on October 12th, 2019

Officials aware of the matter said that the Road Transport and Highways Ministry is working on a new toll policy, in which concessional rates can be kept for electric vehicles.

The government is considering keeping the concessional toll rate for electric vehicles. The government wants to encourage the adoption of environmentally friendly solutions in the country. Officials aware of the matter said that the Road Transport and Highways Ministry is working on a new toll policy, in which concessional rates can be kept for electric vehicles. The ministry may decide to waive tolls or give up to 50 percent discount for these trains.

The government wants to promote electric vehicles in the country. Recently, the Goods and Services Tax on electric vehicles was also reduced. Transport minister Nitin Gadkari recently said that the government will not set a deadline for the electrical vehicle to be fully adopted and this work will naturally be done in the coming times. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has sent the draft policy to the nodal ministry ie Road Transport and Highways Ministry for consultation. An official told ET, ‘NHAI has made several suggestions in the toll policy. Exemption from toll rate is one of them.

The Highways Ministry hired the Boston Consultancy Group (BCG) to prepare a draft toll policy in collaboration with NHAI. This policy will bring a big change in the toll system in the country. Another government official said that NHAI suggested not charging toll from electric vehicles, but doing so would affect NHAI’s revenue and private concessionaires could demand compensation from the highways making authority for the loss. The official said, “It is a better option to give some concessions so that the revenue of NHAI does not have much impact.”

A third official said, “In the draft toll policy, NHAI has suggested that 50 percent concession in toll rates should be given to electric vehicles so that the government can encourage people to buy these vehicles.” He said, “This concession will remain in force for the first five years after the policy is announced.”

An official said that concession on electric vehicles will be given through FASTags only. The government has made electronic toll collection mandatory for Fastag from December 1. The motive behind this is to prevent the jam plaza from forming on the toll plaza. So far, the e-tolling facility has been started in all lanes on about 80 percent of the 522 toll plazas on national highways. NHAI is working towards building this facility in every lane of every plaza by December.

Resource : https://www.sinceindependence.com