Under tight security, a smooth ride for others on day one
Ever since the start of toll collection on NH 7 (Bangalore-Bellary Road) from Friday midnight, airport taxi drivers have been up in arms, questioning the need for toll on a road that is reeling under the chaos of the elevated expressway construction.
“The road is not signal-free, and with the expressway construction its condition is pathetic. How can they justify toll for such a road?” said taxi driver Dinesh Kumar.
Taxi drivers told The Hindu they would resist the toll till the elevated expressway was constructed. “Car suspensions need to be changed frequently, and tyres routinely get punctured due to the condition of the road,” said driver Nadeem Ahmed.
Having to cough up Rs. 25 per trip singes their pocket, the drivers said. “We do three trips per day, which works out to Rs. 75. Most passengers refuse to pay, so we end up paying,” said Mr. Ahmed.
Cutting into lunch
An unintended effect of levying toll on vehicles entering and exiting the airport is that lunch becomes an expensive prospect for the drivers.
“We can't afford to eat in the BIAL canteen every day. Before the toll, we would drive to Chikkajala for the cheap food there. However, now, with toll being added, it makes no sense to travel out for food,” said Mahesh.
Security tightened
Meanwhile, over 100 policemen, including two Karnataka State Reserve Police platoons, were posted at the toll plazas to ensure the incident-free toll collection.
With eight booths at the plaza, it was a smooth ride for those returning from the airport. The only hiccups, said a toll manager, were a few irate taxi drivers who vented their frustration.
“Many commuters were confused about the fee structure. A few drivers thought it was Rs. 20 per trip and not Rs. 25, and a few others assumed a pass was valid for the entire day,” he said.
Keywords: road maintenance, toll collection
Comments:
Taxi associations are right. The roads are not repaired. Lot of places there are diversions.Government cannot impose tariff at the time when there are no alternative roads to Airport.This is absolutely fleecing measure...
This is one more example of a Public Plundering partnership between
Government and Private agencies. The road infrastructure for which toll
is being collected is not yet built.
yes they are right. this is just the game of some corrupt leaders and greedy businessmen. how can they charge for bad roads . this is not a story of bangalore,but every city. people are harassed by these toll collectors.
good good!!!
What a pathetic shame this country called India has become. There was more law and order, and better infrastructure for the citizens 50 years ago than today when the nation is a 100 times richer. The problem is that we have corrupt scoundrels at the helm of affairs in both industry and government who refuse to give back a citizen's dues. They have all by force taken control of all aspects of life and deem it their God given right to defraud the average human being. The Taxi drivers and their associations are absolutely right to question why a toll should be paid for chaos in traffic on broken roads. Frankly, nobody should have to pay any toll until such times when the highways are pliable safely.
I am sure it not far that we will be paying toll to even walk on streets. Trust me if this way the government runs the city there will be a revolution which will prove very costly and one revolution should and will happen in India like it happened in Egypt and Tunisia.There is limit where you can push a human being and outburst will eventually come out in one form or other.
How come no one is filing a PIL in this case. The overpass construction has destroyed a perfectly good road for no obvious benefits from the overpass. On top of that they now want to charge toll for a road that is extremely dangerous and crude to drive on. Barriers appear out of nowhere all of a sudden. A huge crane will be lurching at you from the opposite direction and so on. This is sheer public fleecing and downright criminal goonda-ism by the govt. It was a project started by the state govt. to siphon off our tax money and add further salt to our injuries by making us pay additional for it. Totally disgusted by the BJP govt here.
When the government collects Road Tax (life tax) at the time of registration of the vehicle and then various taxes on the fuel, then 10-30% tax on salary income, then service taxes and so on ......, inefficient governments collect toll? It is totally unjustifiable. Team Hindu, Please ask for a white paper on where the tax collected goes and why this burden on the public.