Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari announced the rollout at the Chorayasi Toll Plaza on the Surat–Bharuch stretch. The MLFF system uses technologies such as Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) and FASTag to automatically identify vehicles and deduct toll charges.
The initiative marks a step in the ongoing digitisation of India’s highway infrastructure and tolling systems. By removing physical barriers, the system is expected to reduce congestion at toll plazas, cut travel time, and improve traffic flow on one of the country’s busiest highway corridors.
Officials said the barrier-less model could also contribute to better fuel efficiency and lower vehicular emissions by minimising idling time at toll points. Reduced reliance on manual toll collection is also expected to streamline operations and limit human intervention.
According to the ministry, the move aligns with broader efforts to modernise national highways and adopt technology-driven solutions for transport infrastructure. The government has been expanding the use of FASTag-based electronic toll collection in recent years, with MLFF seen as the next phase in that transition.
In a related development, ICICI Bank has collaborated as the banking partner for the MLFF tolling system at the Chorayasi Fee Plaza, supporting the backend payment infrastructure that enables vehicles to pass through at highway speeds without stopping or barriers.
The government indicated that similar systems could be introduced at other locations over time, based on the performance of the pilot deployment.
First Published: May 2, 2026 11:28 AM IST
