Hyderabad: ORR users in a fix as clarity eludes FASTag annual pass

Annual toll pass allows unlimited access across NH toll plazas - subject to a maximum of 200 crossings or one year of validity, whichever comes earlier; confusion over its implementation continues

Hyderabad: Will motorists using the 158-km Outer Ring Road (ORR) be able to save on toll charges as per a new FASTag-based annual pass? Confusion over this continues to reign even as the motorists await some clarity.

Last week, Union Transport Minister Nithin Gadkari announced that starting August 15, private vehicle owners can opt for a FASTag-based annual toll pass allowing unlimited access across National Highway toll plazas – subject to a maximum of 200 crossings or one year of validity, whichever comes earlier.

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Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) officials said, “If this regulation is implemented on national highways and ORRs, we will also comply with the directives accordingly.”

The ORR is an eight-lane expressway that encircles Hyderabad and connects NH 44, NH 65, NH 161, NH 765, and NH 163 from Hyderabad to Vijayawada and Warangal, alongside state highways leading to Vikarabad, Nagarjuna Sagar, Karimnagar, and Mancherial.

The new FASTag yearly subscription is priced at a minimum of Rs 3,000 per annum and it automatically converts to regular FASTag operations upon reaching either 200 trips or completing one year.

The annual pass activation occurs following verification of both vehicle eligibility and associated FASTag details. Users need to make a payment of Rs 3,000 for the base year 2025-2026 through either the Rajmargyatra mobile application or NHAI’s official website.

The permit is exclusively for private vehicles used for non-commercial purposes, such as cars, jeeps, and vans. Regular users of toll roads gain significantly from this initiative and the cost per toll passage reduces to just Rs 15 – a substantial saving compared to current standard toll charges, which range between Rs 80 and Rs 100 per passage.

The ORR has 20 interchange junctions including Kokapet, Shamshabad, TSPA Junction, Nanakramguda, Gachibowli, Muttangi, Patancheru-Dommarapochampalli, Kandlakoya, Medchal (NH44), Nagpur highway, Shamirpet (SH1), Karimnagar State Highway, Keesara, Annojiguda, Ghatkesar, Pedda Amberpet, and Bongloor.