MLFF tolling system: While toll plazas across the country run on FASTag-based toll deduction, it is the Multi-Lane Free Flow toll system that is touted to sophisticate the highways further. India’s first MLFF is going live at Choryasi toll plaza on NH-48 between Surat and Bharuch in Gujarat from May 1. 

While FASTag will ensure swift toll deductions, MLFF will remove the slightest wait period too. 

The NHAI is planning to roll out MLFF-based tolling at around 25 National Highway fee plazas soon. NHAI Chairman Santosh Kumar Yadav said the system will create a “more efficient, transparent, and user-friendly tolling ecosystem” in the country. 

NHAI’s tolling arm, IHMCL (Indian Highways Management Company Limited), has bid the contracts for multiple tolls including at Gharaunda in Haryana on the Delhi-Amritsar highway, Manoharpura, Shahjahanpur and Daulatpura in Rajasthan on Delhi-Jaipur highway, Nemili in Tamil Nadu, Kesapalli in Andhra Pradesh and Chalakwadi in Maharashtra, as per a report in Times of India.

WHAT IS THE MLFF TOLLING SYSTEM?

The Multi-Lane Free Flow toll system is a barrier-less toll system, where cars and vehicles do not need to stop to pay the toll. The car just needs to pass through and the owner will receive a message about the deduction of toll. 

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The toll is enabled through reading of the FASTag and Vehicle Registration Number (VRN) by High performance RFID Readers and ANPR Cameras. 

BENEFITS OF MLFF TOLL SYSTEM

The advanced tolling system will not only be easy on your pocket, it will also be easy on the environment. The MLFF toll system will ensure:

• Cars don’t need to stop at toll plazas
• Congestion is reduced
• No requirement for extra lanes
• Travel time is reduced
• Enhanced fuel efficiency
• Low emissions
• Increase toll revenue collection for the govt
• Smarter highways

WHAT ABOUT VIOLATORS?

According to the report in Times of India, since there is no physical barrier, it would make it difficult to catch vehicles with a faulty FASTag, having low balance of having no FASTag at all. In such cases, the IHMCL will issue e-notices to the owners of the vehicles making it mandatory to clear the toll within 72 hours. Failing to do so would mean the penalty would be doubled. Complete failure to pay would mean the denial of the no-objection certificate (NOC) at the time of registration renewal, change of ownership, transfer, and while issuing a fitness certificate, the report added.

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Published on: May 1, 2026 11:54 AM IST