Hyderabad: The electronic toll collection system on the ORR is facing criticism with motorists saying that the FASTags the radio frequency identification (RFID) empowered payment system becoming purposeless.
Motorists said the equipment at the toll booths, managed by Eagle Infra, was able to detect the FASTags attached to the wind shields of the vehicles. The toll fee agency was collecting an average charge of Rs 60, which is half the charge for vehicles that travel the entire 158-km length of the ORR. The toll from Rajendernagar to Gachibowli is Rs 30 but the agency was collecting Rs 60 for four wheelers.
Mr Praveen Tiwari, a motorist, who travelled from the APPA junction to Kokapet found Rs 60 deducted from his FASTag purse, when the charge was `30. He said when he took the issue to the toll booth staff, it ended in a verbal confrontation.
Echoing his concern, Mr Pranav Goyal, travelling from Gachibowli to Rajendernagar, said Rs 70 had been deducted from his FASTag account. “Absolute mismangament,” he said.
Mr K. Niranjan Reddy stated that using the FASTag on the ORR is a waste of time. He said he had been using FASTag since its launch but found it faster to travel between Rajendranagar to Kokapet without the attachment.
Asked about the problems, Mr Akhilesh from Eagle Infra India said a few readers installed at toll plazas have been not reading the RFID FASTags due to a technical snag. He said Efkon India Pvt. Ltd, who has been maintaining the software of e-toll system on ORR have been rectifying the error.
When asked about the excess withdrawals from FASTag user accounts, Mr Akhilesh said the bankers had been deducting the amounts on an average basis since they were unable to gauge the distance travelled by motorists. He said in such cases motorists can visit the bank to get the amount reimbursed.
A senior HMDA official said that issue would be resolved by Monday and the issue will be notified to Efkon India Pvt. Ltd engineers.
The HMDA claimed that it has completed e-toll system for 80 lane km from Shamshabad to Nanakramguda and from APPA junction to Kokapet. As many as 10,000 vehicles have been using FASTags.
