Hyderabad: To ensure that vehicles don’t have to wait for long at toll booths on the Outer Ring Road, the HMDA intends to draw a line on the ground for the operator, Eagle Infra India Limited. If the waiting line of vehicles cross the line, they will not need to pay the fee.
The no-wait clause was written into the agreement that the HMDA had entered into with Eagle Infra which won the deal to operate the toll booths at the 19 interchanges on the ORR.
However, the agency, citing lacunae in the agreement, has been collecting the fee even when there is long queue, leaving drivers fuming.
The HMDA appointed Eagle Infra India Limited, which placed the highest bid of Rs 24.29 crore per month. The agreement runs 18 months. The agreement specified that if there are more than 20 vehicles at any point in time in any lane at the toll booth, the operator should clear the traffic without collecting the fee.
This condition came into force from April 1 and was meant to ensure traffic jams do not occur at the toll booths during busy hours.
Violating the norms, Eagle Infra has been collecting the fee even when many vehicles have waited for long minutes in the queues. This was noticed at Gachibowli, Nanakramguda, Shamshabad and Rajendernagar almost daily. To prevent the operator from flouting the rule, the HMDA would mark a white line on the road at a distance which can accommodate 20 vehicles, from the toll plaza. An official said that if a vehicle has to wait outside the white line, motorists can demand that the toll booth staff open the gate till the line of waiting cars thins down.
The official said the municipal authority would erect sign boards at all 19 interchanges to inform motorists of the condition
This apart, the official said that the Hyderabad Growth Corridor Limited, a unit of the HMDA, is planning to increase the number of lanes at the Nanakramguda and Shamshabad toll booths to facilitate smooth flow of traffic. The official said the agency had to deploy additional manpower at its own cost.
