Islamabad: The National Highway Authority (NHA) has revised the toll tax on motorways, national highways and major motorways across the country and implemented new rates. According to a notification issued by the authority, the new fares have been implemented with immediate effect, after which the new fixed fees are being collected from various types of vehicles.
According to the NHA, the revised rates will be applicable to cars, waggons, minibuses, buses, two- and three-axle trucks, as well as articulated and heavy goods vehicles. Officials say that the change in toll fees has been made keeping in mind the maintenance of roads and motorways, operational costs and infrastructure improvement.
Under the new schedule, toll taxes have been increased on several important highways, including M-1, M-3, M-4, M-5, M-14, E-35 Hazara Motorway, Kohat Tunnel and Islamabad-Murree Dual Carriageway. After this decision, both private and commercial users travelling on these routes will have to pay more than before.
waggonsAccording to the new fees issued for national highways, the toll for cars has been fixed at Rs 100, for wagons at Rs 200 and for buses at Rs 300. Similarly, separate rates have been fixed for other heavy vehicles.
The toll for cars on the M-3 motorway from Lahore to Abdul Hakeem has been increased to Rs 1,000, while for waggons it has been fixed at Rs 1,500, for minibuses at Rs 2,200 and for buses at Rs 3,150.
The new toll fee for cars on the M-4 motorway, which connects Pindi Bhattian to Multan, has been fixed at Rs 1,350. Waggons will be charged Rs 1,950, minibuses at Rs 2,900 and buses at Rs 4,050.
Similarly, the toll for cars on the M-5 motorway from Multan to Sukkur has been fixed at Rs 1,500. The new fee of Rs 2,200 for a waggon, Rs 3,250 for a minibus and Rs 4,600 for a bus has been implemented.
The NHA said that the revised rates are applicable at all the relevant toll plazas, and toll is being collected from the passengers as per the new schedule. The authority has directed the passengers to check the latest toll rates of the relevant route before travelling to avoid any hassle.
According to transport and economic experts, the recent increase in toll tax may increase the cost of inter-district travel and freight, which is also likely to have an impact on transport fares and delivery of essential goods. However, the practical impact in this regard will depend on the policy of the transport operators and the overall economic situation.