India's NHAI Revises Toll Calculation, Cuts Fees up to 40%

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has issued new directives under the amended National Highway Fee Rules, requiring all regional offices to recalculate toll charges on stretches that include bridges, tunnels, flyovers or elevated corridors. Two formulas are now used: (1) ten times the length of special structures plus the length of the remaining road, and (2) five times the total length of the entire highway section. NHAI will apply whichever result yields the lower tollable distance, and structures 60 metres or shorter are exempt from special treatment.

The change replaces the previous method that treated every kilometre of costly infrastructure as ten kilometres of ordinary road, often inflating tolls disproportionately. Under the new rule, motorists on many Indian highways could see tolls reduced by as much as 40 percent. NHAI has instructed field offices to update toll notifications accordingly, aiming to ease the financial burden on drivers and transporters while maintaining transparent fee determination.