'E-way vehicles should pass through toll plazas in 3 minutes'

Amidst complaints of delays at the toll plazas on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, Pune administration today issued directions towards development of a mechanism to ensure that vehicles pass through the toll booths within three minutes.
Pune District Collector Saurabh Rao gave the direction to the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) and officials of IRB, which operates and maintains the E-way, during a joint meeting held here.
Rao asked the authorities to develop a mechanism on toll plazas on the Expressway so that each vehicle passes through in three minutes and halting time of commuters can be reduced, according to a press release.

The instructions were issued in the wake of frequent complaints received from the commuters about inordinate delays at the toll plazas that lead to the traffic snarls on E-way, it added.
The district administration also warned the MSRDC and IRB that if the toll collection efficiency does not improve, it would have to intervene and send a team of officials at the toll plazas to make the process swifter with each vehicle passing through the toll plaza in exactly three minutes.
In December 2015, the district administration had intervened at the Khed Shivapur tollbooth on Pune-Bangalore Highway (NH-4), where officials inspected the toll plaza and found out that with strict monitoring, congestion can be streamlined.

Rao, while taking cognisance of the surge in the accidents on the Expressway, said besides the human errors, the absence of basic infrastructure and facilities could also be one of the reasons.
He also instructed the officials to curb the entry of animals and two-wheelers on the Expressway by blocking illegal entry points along the road.
He also directed the officials to take appropriate action against two wheeler riders, who usually ride on Expressway.