New Delhi: The government Wednesday informed Parliament that toll collections from National Highways (NH) and Expressways have more than doubled over the last five years, rising from Rs 33,929 crore in 2021-22 to Rs 70,278 crore in 2025-26, driven by a steady expansion in the number of toll plazas across the country.
In a written reply to a question by Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge in Rajya Sabha, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said the number of operational toll plazas on National Highways increased from 733 in 2021-22 to 1,183 in 2025-26 across states and Union Territories.
In 2025-26, Rajasthan had the highest number of operational toll plazas among states at 172, followed by Uttar Pradesh (141), Maharashtra (105) and Madhya Pradesh (98).
Among states, Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest toll revenue in 2025-26 at Rs 8,862 crore, followed by Rajasthan (Rs 7,317 crore), Maharashtra (Rs 7,053 crore) and Gujarat (Rs 6,352 crore).
The government also collected Rs 1,795 crore through the annual pass scheme introduced for private non-commercial vehicles in 2025-26, taking the total toll receipts for the year to Rs 70,278.18 crore.
However, the government said it does not maintain centralised data on the expenditure incurred in operating toll plazas.
Gadkari said toll plazas function under multiple implementation models, including public-funded projects and public-private partnership (PPP) modes such as Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT), Toll-Operate-Transfer (TOT), Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) and Operate-Maintain-Transfer (OMT).
“The expenditure on operation cost of tolling is incurred by the respective concessionaire (for PPP mode fee plazas) /user fee collection agency (for public funded mode fee plazas) in accordance with the respective concession agreement/contract agreement,” the reply stated.
The minister also informed Parliament that user-fee collection has been temporarily discontinued at seven toll plazas across six states. The collection was suspended at one plaza each in Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and Karnataka following public protests and law-and-order issues.
In Gujarat, tolling was halted after heavy rainfall damaged the highway, while two plazas in Himachal Pradesh were shut following landslides and other natural calamities. In Kerala, one toll plaza was discontinued after the commissioning of a six-lane upgraded highway.
On the government’s tolling policy, Gadkari stated that the ministry has introduced a series of measures since June 2025 to reduce the burden on road users while ensuring adequate resources for highway development.
These include an annual pass for private non-commercial vehicles, lower user charges on highways with longer structures, reduced penalties for vehicles making UPI payments despite Fastag issues, rationalised toll rates after highway upgrades, and lower charges for partially operational expressways.
The minister said the government remains committed to making the tolling system “more efficient, transparent, and user-friendly” while supporting the expansion and maintenance of the National Highway network.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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