Additional lanes at toll plazas soon

Initiative will encourage more users to switch to electronic fee payment

Endless wait: The long queue of vehicles at the Maduravoyal toll plaza. —M. PRABHU

In an effort to reduce the waiting time for motorists, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is studying possibilities of adding more lanes in plazas surrounding Chennai.

“We have been getting complaints that vehicles are made to wait for more time than necessary, which is why we are looking to increase the number of lanes,” said a source in the NHAI.

Another aim is to encourage more motorists to switch over to the FasTag system that enables electronic toll collection.

“Unless we create additional lanes, we cannot provide separate lanes for FasTag users so that they need not wait too long. If these users, who pay the fees upfront, end up taking the same time as other users, they will not be keen on using the facility,” the source added.

Space at plazas at Athur (10 lanes), Paranur (12 lanes), Vanagaram (8 lanes), Surapet (12 lanes) and Nallur (14 lanes) was measured to see how many more lanes could be added.

More plazas

“The available space would be used to create more plazas. We will now work out the cost estimate for the work and send it to Delhi for approval. The entire exercise is likely to take two-three months,” the official said.

I. Selvakumar, a resident of Korattur, said that he travelled often between Ambattur and Tambaram and took the Chennai bypass. “The wait time at the toll plazas can become irksome. We waste so much fuel and the toll attendants are slow or do not have change,” he said.