Kolkata, Oct 16 (IANS) A Japanese delegation visited the Multi-Lane Free Flow (MLFF) tolling system in Mundka-Bakkarwala on Friday on the sidelines of the 12th India–Japan Joint Working Group Meeting on Roads and Road Transportation.
The MLFF system provided insights into India’s technology-driven initiatives for seamless and efficient highway travel.
At the MLFFs, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) uses a combination of RFID-based FASTag electronic toll collection, automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) and AI analytics to allow vehicles to pass through charging points without stopping, slowing down or remaining in a designated lane.
MLFFs have already been installed at Choryasi in Gujarat, Mundka in Delhi, Gharaunda in Haryana and Daulatpura and Manoharpura in Rajasthan.
While 12 further locations have been awarded for conversion, tenders have also been launched covering an additional 104 toll plazas around the country.
The MLFF at Choryasi on the Surat–Bharuch section of NH-48 was the first to become operational.
The one at Mundka on Delhi’s Urban Extension Road-II was the second.
The expansion plan represents a significant shift from India’s traditional barrier-based toll plazas.
Rather than moving immediately to satellite-based toll collection, the Indian government has opted to build on the country’s established FASTag system and combine it with ANPR and AI.
Expert committees had recommended further consideration of GPS-based barrier-free tolling because of security, privacy and operational control issues, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has indicated.
FASTag and ANPR/AI was thus selected as the technology for the current MLFF programme.
The session of the India–Japan Joint Working Group on Roads and Road Transportation Sector was successfully held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi.
Discussions focused on advanced construction technologies, bridge and tunnel engineering, sustainable infrastructure and digital innovations, fostering the exchange of technical expertise and best practices.
“The meeting reaffirmed both nations’ commitment to safe, sustainable and technology-driven road infrastructure, aligned with the vision of Viksit Bharat @ 2047,” the Ministry said in a statement.
–IANS
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