The Maharashtra State Road Development Corpor-ation (MSRDC) wants toll operator Mumbai Entry Point Private Limited (MEPL) to introduce an infrared-based onboard unit system for toll payment at the five entry points of Mumbai.
The prepaid system consists of a chip installed on the vehicle, which will automatically deduct the toll when the vehicle passes the toll gate. “We want the MEPL to install an onboard unit at the Vashi toll plaza, so that we don’t have long queues and traffic jams and the movement of vehicles is relatively fast,” said S.R. Nandargikar, MSRDC chief engineer. Mr Nandargikar added that he would be writing to the toll operator to install the system.
However, as of now, the operator will be introducing a radio frequency identification (RFID) based system for quicker payment of toll. “We are in the process of installing an RFID-based system at one of the toll plazas of Mumbai. The system will start functioning on a pilot basis in the next three months,” said Jayant Mhaiskar from MEPL.
As per the plans, the RFID-based system will replace the present paper-based monthly pass system. If the response to the RFID system is good, the same will be replicated at the four other entry points of Mumbai. Similarly, there are plans to introduce smart cards for toll collection and this will be available for use at all the five entry points.
The onboard unit system was introduced at Bandra-Worli Sealink. The onboard unit was introduced for smoother payment of toll charges. However, it received poor response, and was discontinued.