Government Cuts Toll Penalty For Non-FASTag Users Via UPI; Consumer Expert Calls FASTag Penalties 'Anti-Consumer'

By Surabhi Gupta

New Delhi: To encourage digital payments and minimise the financial burden of highway travellers, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has issued a new toll payment policy for vehicles without valid FASTags. Starting on November 15, 2025, vehicles without FASTags will have the option to pay tolls using the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) at 1.25 times the normal toll rate instead of paying double the current penalty by paying cash.

Under the new policy, if the vehicle standard toll is ₹100, a commuter is expected to pay ₹125 with UPI instead of paying ₹200 in cash. This adjustment aims to encourage commuters to use digital payment methods through a remarkable reduction of cash payments at toll plazas, which will promote efficiency and transparency in toll booth collection.

Prof Bejon Kumar Misra, International Consumer Policy Expert, told ETV Bharat, "The government has shown empathy towards the consumers by reducing the penalty for not having the FASTag. In my view, there should be no penalty at all, and I should have the choice as a consumer to pay in cash on the spot or in advance."

"I am totally against FASTag, it is nothing but exploitation of the consumers and burdening the consumers with avoidable anti-consumer practices. Only because of inefficiencies and lack of accountability in the governance of providing good roads out of huge taxes collected from the motorised vehicle owners and taxpayers, such methods are adopted without any consultation with the citizens," Misra added.

According to Misra, the Centre should come out with a white paper to justify such avoidable collections of toll in the garb of building express highways and modernising mobility.

"Let the citizens decide about the toll. I recall due to my intervention, we could remove several toll gates as they had outlived purpose, and there was a connivance established between the private entities and the government to continue with such unfair trade practices. As I am a consumer, I always look for value for money provided in a transparent and accountable manner. We must have a choice to decide about our convenience," added Misra.

The new rule also includes provisions for technical malfunctions at toll plazas. If the electronic toll collection system fails and a vehicle’s FASTag has sufficient balance, commuters will be allowed to pass through without any deduction. A zero-transaction receipt detailing the date, time, and vehicle class will be issued, ensuring accountability and transparency in toll collection.

In a notification, the highways ministry stated, "Provided that if the user of the vehicle, without a FASTag or a valid, functional FASTag, as the case may be, opts to pay the fee through UPI, he shall pay 1.25 times of the user fee applicable to that category of vehicle."

Currently, vehicles without an installed or functional FASTag are required to pay double the toll in cash, a policy introduced to increase adoption of the system, which has drastically reduced waiting times at toll plazas. In 2022, the average time spent waiting at toll plazas was only 47 seconds, indicating the progress made with digital tolls.

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, has reiterated the importance of preventing cash leakages in national highway tolls. He revealed that almost ₹10,000 crore are lost yearly due to leakages, in a launch for satellite-based toll collection in June 2024.

For regular highway users, the FASTag Annual Pass, inaugurated by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on August 15, 2025 offers a smooth and affordable way to travel. The pass provides 200 toll transactions, or is valid for one year on any non-commercial vehicle with a valid FASTag, whichever comes first, at a price of ₹3,000. The pass is easy to activate via the ‘Rajmargyatra App' or NHAI website.

The FASTag Annual Pass was met with great response. Over 1.40 lakh users purchased and activated the pass on the very first day, and over 1.39 lakh transactions were conducted across 1,150 toll plazas on that same day. The Ministry reported that around 20,000–25,000 users have been concurrently using the Rajmargyatra App, receiving zero-deduction SMS notifications for toll payments.

To ensure smooth experiences for annual pass users, NHAI has appointed officials at each toll plaza and strengthened the 1033 National Highway Helpline with over 100 additional executives. The move is designed to address grievances efficiently and maintain a high standard of service at toll plazas.

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