NHAI hikes Nelamangala toll fee from September 1

The toll fee at Nelamangala (Doddakarenahalli) plaza will go up starting September 1, with cars paying more for return (two-way) tickets while the fee for buses will go up even for single-journey tickets.

The previous revision of the fee rate was in 2019 with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) not effecting a hike last year. The authority approved the latest revision for Doddakarenahalli and Karabylu plazas recently and the hike was notified on Friday.

Starting September 1, the return journey fee for cars at Nelamangala will go up from Rs 65 to Rs 70 and the monthly pass price will go up by Rs 40, to Rs 1,390. There is no change in the single journey fee of Rs 45.

For buses and trucks, single and return journey fees will increase by Rs 5 and Rs 10, respectively, while the monthly pass price will go up by Rs 140, to Rs 4,865.

The fee will also go up for multi-axle vehicles. The
Rs 75-hike in the monthly pass price for light commercial vehicles will hit those making a living by carrying vegetables and goods.

Radhakrishna Holla, president of Karnataka State Travel Operators Association said the government should have postponed the hike for the next two years, allowing the market players to recover.

“Taxis, lorries and trucks literally carry the economy forward. However, Covid has put us in a dire situation with many withdrawing from business. The government can’t give toll holiday, but it should at least spare the people from the regular hikes,”
he said.

As NH-75 is the central grid connecting Bengaluru and Chennai with most parts of Karnataka as well as India, the toll plaza has been seeing high traffic even in the pandemic year. In 2020, about 16,000 to 22,000 cars exited Bengaluru every day and a similar number entered from outside. The number of buses was pegged at 2,000 to 2,500 per day on each
direction.

Before the pandemic, the weekend traffic on the road beat records regularly. The peak hours saw huge snarls with vehicles lining up for over 500 metres. Authorities believe the adoption of FASTag has reduced the time taken to clear a vehicle at the plaza, allowing smooth movement of vehicles.