FAISALABAD: Traders have demanded the government abolish ‘extra toll collection’ on the Pindi Bhattian-Faisalabad motorway (M-3) besides the interchanges, warning of blocking the motorway in protest against the move to charge extra tax.

The toll is being charged from the motorists just two kilometers from the Pindi Bhattian interchange.

Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Ahtsham Javed says the motorists have to wait for a long time to pay toll while travelling on the motorway. He has termed toll collection in long queues in the middle of the road during travel an unwise decision.

He says practice of receiving toll on the motorway in the past proved a dud, however, the same exercise has again started, which is condemnable.

Anjuman-i-Tajiran City Secretary Mehmood Alam says the traders’ body has informed the administration and various quarters that they will block the motorway if the toll collection continues. He informed the scribe that a couple of days ago an accident took place due to the long queue on the motorway as the driver was not aware that vehicles were stopping to pay toll in the middle of the motorway.

Mr Alam has termed the weird way of toll collection in the middle of the travel on motorway ‘Jagga Tax,’ saying it is not acceptable at any cost. He says the traders would convene a meeting soon to devise their future course of action.

“The purpose of the motorway is to make travel faster and safer but the government is doing otherwise and inviting the public anger,” he adds.

He argues that the government has been collecting toll tax from interchange to interchange and the motorists have been paying it without any complaint although the rates of the toll are increased frequently.

Shafaqat Bhatti, traveling on the motorway to reach Lahore, has shared the videos of the people collecting toll from the motorists while sitting on the cot. He says he had to wait for about 40 minutes for his turn to pay the toll.

Sohail, a local businessman, bemoans that instead of facilitating the motorists the government and the National Highway Authority (NHA) are making the travel difficult even on the motorways. He has also complained of waiting for about one hour in the queue to pay the toll on this recently reactivated toll plaza, which would increase the fuel consumption of vehicles and waste time.

“If the motorists would wait for hours on the motorway then what would be the difference between the GT Road and motorway,” he wonders.

“The National Highways Authority (NHA) should introduce a mechanism and announce categorically that the vehicles having no required balance in their E-card would not be allowed to run on the motorway,” he has suggested.

National Assembly Standing Committee on Communications chairman Ibadulah Khan says he has no knowledge when and why toll collection was started.

Mazhar Rehman, an official of the NHA, says the section was given to the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) on the build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis and the organisation would be in a better position to give information about the toll collection.

This correspondent called the FWO headquarters for its version and an official who introduced himself as Kabir said that one Faisal, who was the spokesperson, was on leave. He was asked to give the cell number of Faisal. Kabir sought time for five minutes so that he could get a number of Faisal, however, he did not turn up. When called back, another official at the FWO office, who did not give his introduction, said one Mubashar was the public relations officer, asking this correspondent to wait for a minute.However, after a couple of seconds he disconnected the call.

Ibadullah Khan says he would talk to the NHA chairman regarding toll collection as he has no information about this collection.

Published in Dawn, November 11th, 2020