New Toll Collection System

Published: 14th Mar, 2024

Context

The government plans to implement a new highway toll collection system based on the global navigation satellite system.

What is the new proposed highway tolling system?

The global navigation satellite system uses a large constellation of satellites to provide more accurate location and navigation information to users globally as compared to the GPS alone.
The new system’s implementation will involve an On-Board Unit (OBU), or a tracking device, fitted inside a vehicle whose location can be mapped using
The co-ordinates of the entire length of the country’s national highways will have to be logged with the help of digital image processing, and software will be used to assign the toll rate on a particular highway, calculate the toll amount for a vehicle as per the distance travelled by it and then deduct it from a wallet linked to the OBU.
The system will additionally have gantries, or arches mounted with CCTV cameras, at various points on a highway for enforcement purposes.
These will capture an image of the vehicle’s high security registration plate and cross verify if a road user is trying to trick the system by either removing the tracking device or travelling without an OBU onboard.

Fact Box: GPS Aided GEO Augmented Navigation (GAGAN)

It is a Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) implemented jointly with Airport Authority of India (AAI).
The main objectives of GAGAN are to provide Satellite-based Navigation services with accuracy and integrity required for civil aviation applications and to provide better Air Traffic Management over Indian Airspace.

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