The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has completed the rollout of its Multi Lane Free Flow (MLFF) tolling system across the entire 270-kilometer Gurugram-Jaipur corridor on National Highway 48. As of August 1, 2026, all three toll plazas on the route now operate without physical barriers, allowing vehicles to pass through at full speed while toll charges are deducted automatically.
The final piece of the puzzle fell into place at the Shahjahanpur Toll Plaza in Rajasthan, which joined the previously upgraded facilities at Daulatpura and Manoharpura. Together, these three plazas form a continuous barrier-free tolling corridor on one of India’s busiest highway stretches.
How the MLFF System Works
The technology relies on a combination of high-performance UHF RFID readers and Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras mounted on overhead gantries. As a vehicle passes beneath a gantry, the RFID readers interrogate its FASTag – the UHF passive tag affixed to the windshield – and the toll amount is deducted from the linked prepaid account in real time. ANPR serves as a secondary verification layer, cross-referencing the vehicle’s registration plate against FASTag records.
FASTag operates in the 860-960 MHz UHF band and has been mandatory on Indian national highways since 2021. The MLFF upgrade removes the last remaining friction point: the physical toll booth itself. Vehicles no longer need to slow down, queue, or stop, which substantially cuts congestion, fuel consumption, and tailpipe emissions at toll locations.
What Drivers Need to Know
NHAI has urged motorists using the corridor to ensure their FASTag accounts carry sufficient balance before setting out. Because there are no barriers or booth attendants, drivers with insufficient funds, expired tags, or malfunctioning transponders will not be stopped at the point of passage. Instead, they will receive electronic non-payment notices generated from ANPR data.
Recipients of these e-notices have a 72-hour window to clear the outstanding toll amount. Failing to pay within that period triggers a penalty of double the standard toll fee. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has said the automated enforcement approach strengthens India’s tolling ecosystem by cutting operational costs and improving collection transparency.
A Stepping Stone Toward Nationwide MLFF
With the NH-48 corridor now fully operational, India has five MLFF-equipped toll plazas in service. The number is set to grow significantly. According to the Economic Survey 2025-26, the government is targeting nationwide MLFF deployment on all four-lane and wider national highways by March 2029.
That timeline suggests a wave of UHF RFID reader and ANPR infrastructure procurement over the coming years, covering hundreds of toll plazas across the country. For the tolling hardware sector, the Indian market represents one of the largest greenfield MLFF opportunities currently in play.
For now, the Gurugram-Jaipur corridor serves as a proof of concept, and early indications point to smoother traffic flow and faster toll realization on the route.
