Starting September 1, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will revise toll costs at 25 toll plazas in Tamil Nadu.
According to official sources, the toll fee hike will vary between 5 per cent and 7 per cent. This annual revision comes in response to increased calls to eliminate toll plazas, particularly those within metropolitan areas. Despite a plea from state highways minister EV Velu to the NHAI, an agency within the Union Road Transport Ministry, no action has reportedly been taken.
According to a senior NHAI official, the state’s 67 toll plazas are used to collect highway usage fees. As of June 1, revisions were made to 36 of these plazas. Typically, the toll prices are revised twice a year, in April and September. However, the change was delayed and took place in June this year because the Lok Sabha election was held in April.
The toll prices for 25 toll plazas in the areas of Walajabad, Villupuram, Vikkravandi, Ulundurpet, Tiruchi, Madurai and Samayapuram are now being revised. The range of the toll fee increase for different vehicle classifications is from Rs 5 to Rs 150.
As per The Hindu, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways got Rs 4,221 crore from Tamil Nadu in fiscal year 2023-24. The state has a total road length of 3,109 km and charges toll at 67 toll plazas, with the Thopur plaza in Krishnagiri alone collecting Rs 269 crore.
Meanwhile, transportation activist S Kamal condemned the rise as an “unnecessary burden” on the public, noting incomplete road widening projects and damaged highway segments, particularly in the Chennai area. “As the monsoon approaches, essential repairs including patchwork to fix potholes remain unfinished. In areas such as Red Hills on the Chennai-Tada-Kolkata highway, incomplete stormwater drain construction has previously caused severe traffic gridlocks during monsoon,” The Times of India quoted activist Kamal as saying.
Traders have warned that the toll hike will have a knock-on effect on the prices of necessary items and private bus operators are expected to raise ticket prices in response.
Moreover, toll operators argue that despite a decade of operation, they are yet to recoup 40 per cent of the costs associated with road construction and maintenance, forcing the toll increase to pay expenses and ensure employee wages.
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