The Tale of Invisible Toll Payments

Long-distance traveling has never been any more efficient and enjoyable as it is with FASTag.

Whether it is a cargo truck going miles or a long drive with loved ones, toll booths and waiting in queue to pay the toll are essential parts of that drive.

However, FASTag has cut short that time as it allows speedy toll payments without the need to stop by for a charge slip.

How smart tags make toll bills easy?

FASTag carries an embedded chip and antenna to capture, transfer, and process the driver’s profile, banking, and vehicle data. It uses RFID (radio frequency identification technology) for enabling the information transfer, and eventually, the transaction.

Usually, the tag is placed on the windshield of any car or vehicle. It facilitates an automatic collection of toll charges when the vehicle passes through the plaza. i.e., the bank account linked with the commuter or the traveler’s tag is automatically deducted.

These smart labels can be recharged at definite intervals. On behalf of banks, many payment processors issue, fulfill, authenticate, and make transactions in real-time.

A smart sticker for every vehicle which helps consumers make payments without any hassle and eliminates inaccurate and time-consuming manual charge collection for the staff.

In simple terms, it is an electronic toll collection payment system that ensures a non-stop ride both for the regular and occasional travelers. They are on-the-go toll payment products issued by the banks, e-commerce, payment banks, and many others for enabling frictionless travel experience.

The FASTag Ideation and Product Evolution

In 2014, a series of pilot studies took place at the Stretch of the Golden Quadrilateral from Ahmedabad to Mumbai. They commended the shorter queues, time conservation, and eradicated the trouble of carrying exact change.

The pilot studies were successful, prompting the experimentation of FASTag payments at other new toll plazas in the Chennai-Bangalore stretch of the Quadrilateral in 2015.

In 2016, FASTag payments covered 70% of all toll booths in the country. The government noticed the efficiency FASTag was bringing to the Indian market. So, in late 2019, FASTag became the mandatory payment system in all toll plazas of India.

Today, almost all the lanes on the national highways are FASTag lanes. This program is a classic testimony of digital payments awareness, adoption, and penetration in India. When a vehicle passing through the highway lane is without a tag, the commuter is taxed twice. During these pandemic times, FASTag offered incredible help both to consumers and NETC employees.

The institutions behind FASTag

The Indian Highways Management Company (IHMCL) associated with the NHAI, the NPCI and the 23 banks governed by NPCI manage FASTag.

With their efforts and the help of Toll Plaza Concessionaires, electronic toll payments are possible today.

Besides, FASTag applies to all categories and kinds of vehicles, including commercial/private cars, buses, trucks, lorries, etc.

There is a range of processes NETC uses for FASTag payment in a toll plaza. It operates with 23 banks governed by NPCI and the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI).

Let’s take a look at how FASTag works:

• Raj’s car is about to pass through a toll plaza. He has a FASTag stuck onto his car’s windshield.
• As he approaches the toll booth, the embedded chip in FASTag is scanned by the sensors at the toll plaza.
• Using Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, the sensors capture vehicle details, TAG status, and TAG balance.
• The toll plaza sensors process this information and send it to the acquiring bank.
• The acquiring bank, in turn, receives a FASTag authorization request from the plaza. This information will then be transferred to the NETC.

• Then NETC will check the FASTag validation and accept or reject the TAG depending on its balance.
• The back end process will be routed to Raj’s bank account (issuing bank), enabling deemed debit.
• After receiving the issuing bank’s authorization response, NETC will forward the same response to the toll system Raj will be passing through.
• Raj’s car can only pass if the toll system receives an ‘approved’ response from NETC.
• He will then receive an SMS for a successful transaction.

But what if Raj did not have enough balance?

This means his car will not be allowed to pass the toll plaza, and the vehicle will be blacklisted. Also he will not be allowed to pass through toll booths any longer.

What else can Raj do?

Some tollbooths also accept money to pass through. But this would mean another few minutes of waiting time and traffic congestion.

A faster way would be for Raj to recharge his FASTag account using his credit/debit card or digital banking. He can recharge with a minimum of Rs. 100.

Benefits of FASTag

Much of FASTag’s success attributes to its convenience. It offers a variety of advantages like below -

• Without the burden of physical cash, commuters save fuel, and waiting time.
• FASTag reduces air pollution and paper consumption.
• Commuters are always kept in the loop of FASTag transactions with an SMS alert on their phones.
• It avoids congestion at the toll plaza and keeps a check on both vehicles and toll booths.

• FASTag has made it easier to process the payments for people working at toll booths.
• Toll booths can keep a check on people who are evading.

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The Road to the Future

FASTag is essential as it provides both financial and managerial comforts. It is advisable to get one for your vehicle, or else you may have to pay double the toll fee on your trip.

Conclusively, FASTag continues to keep commuters traveling far and wide have a hassle-free journey. We hope to see more of FASTag’s success.

Who would have known that a tiny sticker would cause so much ease!

About the author:

Hi, I’m Shreemoyee ! A final year student studying Media and Communications at Manipal Institute of Communication, and working as a content intern at M2P. Murder mysteries shivers my timbers, the stars tell me its stories through astrology, and writing fintech is my passion.