New Delhi: If you travel to Delhi from Haryana or UP, then there is a relief news for you. Traveling to and from Delhi can now be a little easier. With two big decisions of the central government, lakhs of people traveling daily between Delhi and NCR can get relief from jam on the border. Actually, MCD toll tax levied on the Delhi border can be removed.
The central government can take two big decisions
The central government has decided to take two important steps to provide relief from the jam on the Delhi border.
First, NHAI will ask MCD to remove the toll tax plazas from the highway, as these are a major cause of traffic jams on the highway. This problem is most prevalent on busy highways like Delhi-Gurgaon (NH48) and Delhi-Ghaziabad-Noida (NH9).
Secondly, the Road Transport and Haryana government will go to the Supreme Court. They will appeal that toll plazas be removed from the borders. They will also demand a change in the 2015 order to collect ECC from commercial vehicles. ECC is different from entry tax. Cab drivers do not pay it, but medium and heavy vehicles have to pay it. MCD collects ECC at five places on the National Highway - Sirhaul (Gurgaon), Ghazipur (NH9), Badarpur (NH19), Tikri (NH10) and Kundli (N44), which causes a lot of traffic jams.
Plan to install gantry-based system for commercial vehicles
NHAI is planning to install a gantry-based (upper) system to collect entry fees from commercial vehicles like cabs. This will eliminate the need for toll plazas. Recently, this plan was approved in a meeting of the Road Transport Ministry. People from the Central, Delhi and Haryana governments were present in this meeting. BJP is in power in all three places. Road Transport Secretary V. Umashankar had assured the Parliamentary Committee on Transport that the problem of jam on the Delhi-Gurgaon border will be solved. The ministry told the committee that it will appeal to the Supreme Court to change the place of collecting entry fees and green tax from all border points including Faridabad and Noida.
NHAI will issue notice to MCD
Sources said that NHAI will issue notice to MCD. Because the Highway Administrator has the right to order the removal of anything that blocks traffic on the highway. The upper tolling plan will have an ANPR-based system. This will reduce the wait of cab drivers. In ANPR-based tolling, the number plates of the vehicle are read by cameras installed above the lane. The toll is automatically deducted from the FASTag wallet. To make this plan successful, NHAI and MCD will have to make their FASTag systems the same. Currently, MCD uses a different system in which toll collectors scan the number plates of vehicles with mobile phones.
ECC collection was also discussed in detail in the meeting. After the order of the Supreme Court, this charge was imposed to reduce pollution in Delhi and improve public transport. ECC ranges from Rs 700 to Rs 1,300. On the instructions of the Supreme Court, the Delhi government gave a part of this fund to the Delhi-Meerut Rapid Rail Project.
Petition will be filed in the Supreme Court
In the petition to be filed in the Supreme Court, there will be a demand to abolish ECC. If this does not happen, then at least an appeal will be made to eliminate the need for physical verification for ECC collection. A source said, "Since the Eastern and Western Peripheral Expressways have become operational and were built for commercial vehicles to bypass Delhi, there is a strong basis to seek a change in this order. Agencies can collect ECC from vehicles entering Delhi through these expressways. This will avoid jams at the borders."
