Road ministry plans to bid out projects worth INR 1.5 lakh crore to INR 2 lakh crore on the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model before the model code of conduct comes into effect while moving to a GPS-based toll collection by March next year, road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari said. The general elections are likely to be held in April-May 2024.
The move is aimed at reducing traffic congestion and charging motorists for the exact distance travelled on the highways, Gadkari said at the annual conference of the Highways Operators Association of India (HOAI) on Wednesday.
“The government is looking at new technologies including GPS-based toll systems to replace toll plazas in the country…We will start new GPS -satellite based toll collection across the country by March next year,” he said.
During 2018-19, the average waiting time for vehicles at toll plaza was eight minutes. With the introduction of FASTags during 2020-21 and 2021-22, the average waiting time of the vehicles has come down to 47 seconds.
Talking on the shift from engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) to BOT model, Gadkari said the government will bid out road projects worth INR 1.5 lakh to INR 2 lakh crore on the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model for highway projects less than 1000 km before the model code of conduct comes into effect.
“Going forward, we will favour the Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) model mostly for highway construction,” he said. InvITs are instruments on the pattern of mutual funds, designed to pool money from investors and invest in assets that will provide cash flows over a period of time.
Gadkari also said the ministry of road transport and highways has conducted two pilot projects of automatic number plate recognition systems (automatic number plate reader cameras) to enable automated toll collection without stopping the vehicles.
