CONTENT
- NATIONAL HIGHWAY AUTHORITY OF INDIA
NATIONAL HIGHWAY AUTHORITY OF INDIA
Focus: GS III- Infrastructure
Why in news?
In order to ensure smooth and quick passage of vehicles at the toll plazas, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has issued guidelines to ensure service time of not more than 10 seconds per vehicle even during peak hours at the toll plazas on the National Highways.
Details:
- The new guidelines will also ensure seamless flow of traffic at the toll plazas by not allowing vehicles to queue up more than 100 metres.
- Although at most of the toll plazas, there is no waiting time after mandatory 100% Fastag, even then if there is queue of waiting vehicles of more than 100 metres due to some reason, the vehicles will be allowed to pass without paying toll till the queue comes within 100 metres from the toll booth.
- For this purpose, a yellow line at a distance of 100 metres from toll booth will be marked in each toll lane.
- This is to inculcate further sense of accountability in toll plaza operators.
National Highways
- National Highways (NH) are the arterial roads of the country for inter-state movement of passengers and goods.
- They traverse the length and width of the country connecting the National and State capitals, major ports and rail junctions and link up with border roads and foreign highways.
- The NHs including Expressways constitute only about 1.7% of the length of all roads, they carry about 40% of the road traffic.
About National Highways Authority of India (NHAI):
Nodal: Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
- National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) was set up under NHAI Act, 1988.
- It has been entrusted with the National Highways Development Project, along with other minor projects for development, maintenance and management.
- National Highways Development Project (NHDP) is a project to upgrade, rehabilitate and widen major highways in India to a higher standard. The project was started in 1998.
- NHAI maintains the National Highways network to global standards and cost effective manner and promotes economic well being and quality of life of the people.
- NHAI has mandated development of about 27,500 km of national highways under Bharatmala Pariyojna Phase-I.
- Bharatmala Pariyojana is an umbrella program for the highways sector that focuses on optimizing efficiency of freight and passenger movement across the country by bridging critical infrastructure gaps through effective interventions.
- The effective interventions include development of Economic Corridors, Inter Corridors and Feeder Routes, National Corridor Efficiency Improvement, Border and International connectivity roads, Coastal and Port connectivity roads and Green-field expressways.
