In an indication of increased economic activities, the toll collection through FASTags touched an all-time high in a day of Rs 122.36 crore on Saturday (30 October).

According to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), the huge collection shows more transport related activities particularly during the festive season. An overall trend also shows that the total revenue increased on all days during last week compared to the previous one.

According to NHAI data, the earlier maximum collection was Rs 106.3 crore on 27 March before the second wave of Covid-19 hit the country. The data also shows that the daily toll collection increased by 5 to 8 per cent during the last week compared to the user charges collected by the toll operators exactly a week back.

All 722 toll plazas on national highways and another 196 toll plazas on state highways or roads collect user fees only through FASTags. Nearly 82 per cent of the total toll charge comes from commercial and heavy vehicles, while cars contribute to barely 18 per cent of the cumulative toll.

Besides higher traffic on highways, the other two factors that have contributed to the increase in toll collection are annual hike in toll charges and bringing more completed stretches under the tolling system.