Mumbai : Small car owners have reason to cheer since, after the scrapping of 53 toll nakas across the state, the state government has now decided to exempt small cars from paying toll across the state. The decision will come into force from August 1.
Chandrakant Patil, the minister for the public works department (PWD), said that the government has decided to exempt all small cars, including tourist cars, from paying toll. “There will be no toll for any small cars any more in the state on any highway. We also will exempt state transport buses from paying toll. The government’s decision will result in an extra burden of Rs 2,900 crores,” Patil said.
“As we are going to exempt small cars from paying toll, it will force the government to increase the toll on big vehicles. However, we are trying to put fewer burdens on big vehicles. It should not be exorbitant for them either,” he said.
A document prepared jointly by the state finance and public works departments proposes to slap a 20 per cent higher rate on heavy vehicles to make up for the inevitable shortfall in collections. The state government is studying the scheme and will then implement it in the current format. But the increase in the cost of goods traffic could neutralize some of the benefits. Truck and tanker owners may pass on the extra charge, leading to a spike in prices of key essentials such as vegetables, milk and other commodities for daily use.
“Small vehicles should not pay toll at Mumbai entry points either. The government is going to pay Rs 250 crore per year for the next 11 years to Mumbai Entry Points (MEP), the company that collects toll from vehicles entering in the town or going out,” the minister said.
Maharashtra has more than 45 toll collection plazas, most of which are operated by private players, who have made a one-time payment to the state government for the road project and are now recovering it with interest.
