Ghaziabad: India National Highways Authority (NHAI) plans to introduce the toll system for traveling vehicles in Delhi-Meerut Expressway (DME) from the second week of July.
Officials in Authority said trials for recently concluded toll systems were recently and they had sent proposals to the service of Union Road Transport and Highways with all details, including tariff.Tolls will be collected through Fastags and between Sarai Kale Khan and Meerut , eight collection points have been proposed.
From them, five were in Ghaziabad himself.
All six Lane corridors became operational in April.
“The road between Sarai Kale Khan and Meerut has been developed in three phases.
The first of Sarai Kale Khan onto the gate, the second phase of the gate to Dasna and the last phase is from Dasna to Meerut,” said Mudit Garg, Director of the Project, Nhai.
“We don’t charge all this victim because we are waiting for all stretches to be operational.
Now, we are ready to introduce the system,” he added.
A stretch of 60km Dme, from Sarai Kale Khan to Meerut, is a controlled access.
“There are eight points of entry / out on the road – Sarai Kale Khan, Akshardham, Indirapuram, Dundehera, Dasna, EPE (near Masuri), Bhojpur and Meerut,” Garg said, adding that the costs will apply to all vehicles that access DME eight points.
But eight NH 9 lines that run parallel with DME, will remain pulse free.
“Automatic number plate reader that is linked with Fastag has been installed at the toll point.
The money will be reduced directly from the Fastag user account,” Garg said.
“All vehicles traveling on the toll road must have a high security registration plate (HSRP).
For vehicles that still do not have it, the toll road will be collected manually for now,” Garg added.
In its proposal, NHAI has said Rs 2.16 per km with toll rates for cars.
At this level, the trip from Sarai Kale Khan to Meerut (60km) will cost around Rs 130.
“The final rate will be decided by the Ministry,” Garg said.
Some people use DME every day to travel between Ghaziabad and Delhi and most of them say they will feel uncomfortable if the toll system is launched.
“The idea of filling the toll road at DME is currently not good because part of the road near the gate is still not accessible because of the protest of farmers.
The stretch near Chipiyana is being built.
This is not an easy journey and even then, we have to pay the toll road,” said Ashish Kumar lawyer , a citizen Indirapuram traveling to Delhi almost every day.
You might be charged toll fees from July for a smooth DME drive
