Toll Collection On E-way | When will toll collection stop on Mumbai-Pune Expressway?
LONAVLA: NpNews24 Online – Toll Collection On E-way | The Mumbai-Pune Expressway was constructed to ensure saving of time, fuel and a safe journey. However, the e-way has become a means of collecting huge amount of money through toll. Hence, commuters are asking when the toll collection will stop. (Toll Collection On E-way)
A question is also being raised about the safety of commuters. A month ago, an ethanol tanker had caught fire on the e-way and this incident had exposed the security arrangements. When the incident had taken place, two small fire engines of IRB could be seen at the spot. The capacity of the engines is good enough to douse the fire engulfing a two-wheeler or a car. A crane was also not available and there is a severe shortage of trained manpower and machinery. This led to an increase in the intensity of the fire and the travellers were badly affected.
Actress Rujuta Deshmukh recently suffered because of the toll collection system. While travelling from Mumbai to Pune, she was charged ₹240 instead of ₹80. Since she did not get an answer even after lodging a complaint, she asked the manager for the explanation on her way back. He told her that she was charged more because she had stopped in Lonavla. Rujuta Deshmukh expressed her anger on social media by asking why she was charged double the toll when she had stopped at Lonavla. She asked whether there was such a rule and was it right.
The expenditure of this project is ₹1,146 crore. A decision was taken to levy a toll to recover the construction cost and the Mumbai-Pune Expressway was built on the BOT basis. It will not be wrong to say that since then, under the pretext of toll, commuters are being looted. The main reason is the mismatch between high toll rates and the facilities that are provided. Toll posts have been set up at three places i.e. Urse near Talegaon, Kusgaon at Lonavla and Khalapur.
If passengers face any problem, then Lonavla is the only option. Passengers may want to eat snacks, use washrooms and require medical facilities etc. While going to Mumbai, there are food malls at Urse, Ozarde and Taje, Khalapur and there are no facilities at other places. While commuting to Pune from Mumbai, the situation is worse. Food mall is available only at Urse and Khalapur toll posts. If there is any problem in a vehicle or even if it is punctured, there is no facility to fix it. There is no police help centre or a medical centre on the entire stretch.
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