Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari on Monday inaugurated Multi Lane Free Flow tolling at the Mundka-Bakkarwala Toll Plaza on Delhi's Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II), marking the second Multi-Lane Free Flow (MLFF) barrier-less tolling system in India. According to reports from Devdiscourse, the Mundka-Bakkarwala Toll Plaza in Delhi follows the government's earlier launch of the country's first MLFF tolling system at the Chorayasi Toll Plaza on the Surat-Bharuch stretch of NH-48 in Gujarat on May 1. The move is aimed at boosting connectivity while easing travel for adjoining villages and surrounding habitations.
The MLFF system uses Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) and FASTag to enable uninterrupted toll collection, allowing vehicles to pass without halting. As reported by Devdiscourse, the state-of-the-art system enables seamless toll collection without requiring vehicles to stop, using advanced technologies such as ANPR and FASTag. The model is aimed at easing congestion, shortening travel time, improving fuel efficiency and reducing emissions, while also limiting manual intervention. During the Gujarat launch, Gadkari had said the barrier-less tolling initiative would improve 'Ease of Living' and support 'Ease of Doing Business' by ensuring quicker and more efficient transport movement.
State-owned National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) is planning to roll out more MLFF tolling at national highway fee plazas during the current financial year. According to Devdiscourse, the national rollout covers 17 fee plazas across nine states and all are aimed to go live by September 2026. These plazas are located in states such as Gujarat, Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Assam. An additional 108+ plazas under phase 2 will follow by March 2027, significantly expanding the barrier-less tolling network across India's National Highways.
The MLFF rollout comes alongside wider changes in India's transport landscape, with Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw telling airline investors that the country's planned high-speed rail network is expected to dominate several heavily used short-haul sectors, sharply reshaping competition on those routes. As reported by Devdiscourse, the initiative is aimed at reducing queues and delays at plazas, saving fuel costs and travel time, besides giving better driving experience. With its introduction on UER-II, the system now extends into the capital's transport network, where improved road infrastructure is expected to support both urban traffic flow and surrounding localities.
