The NHAI accepting social distancing as the new normal acknowledged the increase in the number of commuters adopting FASTag as a toll payment option to minimize the instances of human contact.

The NHAI informed on Wednesday, May 26th, 2021 that it has issued new guidelines to ensure not more than 10 seconds service time per vehicle for minimizing human contact even during peak hours.

Additionally, NHAI said the new set of guidelines will ensure seamless flow of traffic at the toll plaza by not allowing vehicles to queue up more than 100 meters. For this purpose, a yellow line at distance of 100 meters from the toll booth will be marked in each toll lane, the NHAI said. Under any situation if the vehicles are seen behind the yellow line, the toll operator will need to let the cars go without paying the tax.

The new rules are only for cash payments. For those who made the switch to FASTag, the tax amount will automatically be deducted as soon as their vehicle approaches the toll window. 

The NHAI has successfully transitioned to 100 percent cashless tolling from mid of February 2021, with the FASTag penetration in NHAI toll plaza has reached 96 percent while a lot many have as much as 99 percent penetration.