Government roll out annual toll pass for private cars; over 20k passes issued

NEW DELHI: Government will roll out the annual toll pass (ATP) for private cars on NHs and national expressways (NEs) from Thursday midnight. Over 20,000 car owners have bought the pass that allows free passage through NH and NE toll plazas for one year or 200 trips whichever is earlier.To start with, car owners can buy the annual pass on the “Rajmargyatra” mobile application and in near future this can also be done through the NHAI website. “The pass is activated after verifying the eligibility of the vehicle and the associated FASTag. Upon successful verification, the user must make a payment of Rs 3,000 for the base year 2025-26 through the Rajmargyatra mobile application. Once the payment is confirmed, the pass is activated on the registered FASTag normally within two hours,” an NHAI official said.Government has claimed this as a gift to people on the eve of Independence Day as the average toll charge at toll plazas will reduce to barely Rs 15 and saving of around Rs 7,000 annually for frequent travellers. People can recharge the pass more than once in a year, if they exhaust 200 free trips. Crossing each toll plaza is counted as a trip.The pass is valid only at NH and NE toll plazas. At fee plazas on other expressways, state highways managed by state governments or local bodies, and parkings the FASTag will operate as a regular FASTag, and applicable user fee charges will apply.