At the headquarters of the National Highway Authority (NHA) on Monday, the National Highway Authority (NHA) and the Frontier Works Organization (FWO) inked an agreement for the installation of electronic toll plazas on highways.
The Honorable Asad Mahmood, Minister of Communications and Postal Services for the Federal Government, presided as the Chief Guest at the event. On this occasion, the Federal Secretary for Communications and Chairman of the National Highway Authority, Capt. (Retd.) Muhammad Khurram Agha and the Director-General of the Frontier Works Organization, Maj. Gen. Kamal Azfar, the Inspector General of the National Highways and Motorways Police, Khalid Mahmood, and the senior officers of the Ministry of Communications and the NHA were also present. The IT Director gave a briefing on the Electronic Toll Collection System for the Frontier Works Organization, Brigadier General (Retired) Asif Siddique.
The agreement was signed by Muhammad Azhar, a member of the NHA Finance Committee, and Brigadier General (Retired) Asif Siddique, Director of Information Technology for the FWO.
Asad Mahmood, the Federal Minister for Communications and Postal Services, delivered remarks at the event and said that the duration of the deal for collecting highway toll tax using an electronic system is 7 years, with the possibility of extending it for an additional 3 years. The installation of modern equipment, services in operational and management, and other services linked to the tolling system are all included in the National Highway system.
This fiber network is being put in place to collect precise data about toll income via contemporary technology, namely the electronic collection of toll tax rather than the physical payment of tolls.
According to Asad Mahmood, the primary purpose of electronic tolling is to guarantee passengers’ absolute safety while facilitating the free flow of traffic and commercial activities. Time would be saved, and a smooth traffic flow would be assured if all toll plazas on National highways were connected and coordinated. According to the minister, the electronic toll system would be progressively extended to the country’s national roads in the following years. Within the next eight months, he anticipated that the automated collection of toll tax on highways would be finished according to the plan. In addition, he suggested that the National Highway Authority’s ongoing projects be completed as quickly as possible while maintaining a sense of national spirit.
It is essential to point out that FWO has the skills and knowledge necessary to implement and run an electronic toll tax collecting system on a technological basis. This is something that should be mentioned here. The Federal Board of Revenue (FWO) is responsible for collecting the toll tax by electronic means on selected lanes at the toll plazas in Islamabad, Ravi, Kala Shah Kaku, and Sambarial. Toll taxes will be collected electronically throughout the country’s network of highways once the contract is implemented, which will secure their collection.
Director General FWO Maj. Gen. Kamal Azfar presented shields on behalf of the FWO to Federal Minister for Communications and Postal Services Asad Mahmood, Federal Secretary Communications and Chairman NHA Capt (Retd) Muhammad Khurram Agha, and Inspector General National Highways and Motorways Police Khalid Mahmood. All three men are former members of the National Highways and Motorways Police.
