Toll Can Be Paid on Padma Bridge in 3 Seconds

The inauguration of the dream Padma Bridge took place today, Saturday (June 25). Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has opened the gates of the Padma Bridge. After paying the toll at Mawa end, the Prime Minister inaugurated the Padma Bridge by unveiling the inaugural plaque and mural-1. At the end of the inauguration, he chanted the slogan 'Joy Bangla'.

There is a modern Electronics Toll Collection (ETC) booth in the Padma Bridge area. The toll will be collected automatically in just 3 seconds from the moving vehicle. As a result, there is no need to wait for the toll to be paid on the road.

The Korean Expressway Corporation, which is in charge of toll collection, has set up the booths. A special Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) card must be affixed to the windshield of the vehicle to pay the toll in this automated manner. The ETC booth will automatically deduct toll from this pre-paid card through Fast Track.

Kazi Mohammad Ferdous, chief engineer (technical) of the Bangladesh Bridge Authority, said the toll plazas on both sides of the Padma Bridge have a total of 14 gates, seven each. In the first phase, electronics toll collection booths will be set up at two gates at both ends. Through which a car can cross in just three seconds. The remaining 12 gates will be operated manually. However, as the use of RFID cards in vehicles increases, so will the number of ETC booths.

He said the vehicle must have an RFID tag approved by the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) for digital payment. The car owner can register directly for RFID by visiting the bank or toll plaza. Vehicle owners must have a Dutch-Bangla Bank Account or Rocket Mobile Account for this registration. The Rocket account must first be registered with the Nexus-Pay application. The facility of paying electronic toll will be available after registration.

In this regard, bridge secretary Mohammad Manzur Hossain said, there will be an automatic toll system in the bridge area. It is not that it will be launched from the 25th. It will take us some time. It will take at least six months for the company that has taken over to launch ETC. The system will be such that anyone who has a specific card will have his car cross uninterrupted. That means, the car doesn't have to stop. Withdraw money from the card, which is called ETC (Electronic Toll Collection). The money will go to the specified account. The bar will go up.

The two Korean and Chinese companies have been jointly tasked with maintaining the Padma Multipurpose Bridge and collecting tolls for five years. The two companies are Korea Expressway Corporation (KEC) and China Major Bridge Engineering Company Limited (MBEC). The two companies will get 692 crore 92 lakh taka for this.

In the first phase, ETC booths will be set up at two gates in the toll plaza on both sides of the bridge. Automated systems will also be introduced at 12 other gates on both sides in phases. Authorities say the toll facility will be rolled out automatically within the next six months.