In‘toll’erable confusion in most plazas due to note shortage

As only about 10 per cent of the vehicles passing through the toll plazas used the Point of Sale (POS) machines to pay the toll fee, heated arguments and long line of vehicles behind the plazas were a common sight. And the bone of contention was the currency of the highest denomination. “Some persons give Rs 2,000 note for a toll fee lesser than Rs 200,” a toll plaza staff at Kaniyur, Coimbatore district, said.  Collection staff claimed that vehicle users failed to understand that they run of change. “Only if 15 to 20 vehicles tender exact fare, I can give change to a user who extends a Rs 2,000 currency. We don’t have adequate Rs 500 currencies,” he added. On Saturday morning, more than 25 vehicles (mostly trucks) had queued up in each of the 14 toll collection bays at the Krishnagiri toll plaza, which is the gateway to Karnataka and North India from Tamil Nadu. 

Nearly 28,000 vehicles pass by the plaza during week days and the number goes up to 32,000 during weekends. The most disadvantaged of the lot were drivers of huge trucks and trailers, who had to stop at a number of toll plazas in day. “Delay in every toll plaza for want of change is badly affecting the delivery of goods. Many trucks got piled up in Krishnagiri, Salem and on Chennai route for more than an hour against the usual five or six minutes,” M R Kumarasamy, State Lorry Owners Federation – Tamilnadu, said. He told DTNext that they have received complaints from truck drivers that many toll plazas refuse to collect old Rs 500 currencies as well as the new Rs 2,000. Pressing for toll fees exemption till December 31, Kumarasamy said that a decision on further course of action over the issue will be decided in consultation with the All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC) and South India Motor Transport Association (SIMTA) as it is a nationwide issue.