Barrier-less toll gates see rise in unidentified vehicles avoiding user fees

At least one in every 10 vehicles crossing the Shahjahanpur toll plaza on the Delhi-Jaipur section of NH-48 is classified as unidentified and fails to pay user fees. Around 2% of vehicles at Delhi's Mundka-Bakkarwala plaza and 3% at the Manoharpura plaza on NH-48 also evade identification. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways is now holding inter-departmental talks with investigating agencies and GST authorities to build a system to catch these vehicles. Officials fear these unidentifiable cars might be involved in crimes like smuggling and sand mining or used to dodge Goods and Services Tax since e-way bills link directly to FASTag.

Data And Misuse

Under the new Multi-Lane Free Flow system, tolls only deduct when a FASTag matches the vehicle number plate. Unidentified vehicles are those with covered, missing, fake, or impersonated number plates. Manoharpura recorded over 99,500 unidentified vehicles out of 31.74 lakh crossings by October 21. Shahjahanpur saw 2.60 lakh unidentified vehicles out of roughly 24 lakh crossings. Paranur in Tamil Nadu logged over 500 such vehicles in its first 20 days. The Gurgaon-Jaipur section of NH-48 is entirely barrier-less across three plazas, meaning a vehicle can cross the whole corridor without paying a single rupee.

Action And Future Plans

Authorities are considering penalties exceeding twice the toll amount and filing First Information Reports, with a final decision expected within a month. NHAI launched MLFF in May, starting with Choryasi in Gujarat. MLFF is currently active at seven plazas and contracts are awarded for 10 more, with bids invited for 104 additional plazas. The Economic Survey projects MLFF will cover all four-lane and wider national highways by March 2029.

Context

Automatic toll collection systems rely heavily on digital data matching between radio-frequency tags and vehicle registration details. When technology removes physical barriers to speed up traffic, it creates new enforcement gaps that require digital tracking solutions to close. Highway authorities work closely with tax and law enforcement bodies to secure both public revenues and transport safety.