Similar to that of the tollgates present in Dubai, Abu Dhabi Transport Authority has introduced the toll gate system in the Emirate that allows all motorists to pass through the city by means of toll gates. 25th July 2019 stands as the date of announcement of this toll gate system while the date of action will be on 15th October 2019 as per the press conference held recently.
The main purpose of introducing this tollgate system is to increase the usage of public transport by people and reduce the usage of private transport.
An announcement was already made previously regarding the introduction of toll gates in Abu Dhabi, however, the details like timescale for rollout, charges are confirmed only now.
Charges on Toll Gates
In the month of October, you can expect a total number of 4 tollgates in the emirate in the below-mentioned areas
Al Maqta Bridge, Mussafah Bridge, Sheik Zayed Bridge, Sheikh Khalifa Bridge
Charges will usually be
Dh 4 in the peak hours ie., 7 am to 9 am & 5 pm to 7 pm
Dh 2 in the normal timings.
Dh 2 will be levied from the motorists during the day when it comes to Fridays and public holidays.
We all know about the Dubai Salik where the vehicles are identified on the basis of Salik tag wherein the case of Abu Dhabi toll gates, the vehicles will be recognized based on the number plates of the vehicles.
Payment of Toll Gates
Motorists passing through the toll gates can make payments by using e-payment machines that are spread all over the emirate.
Any dues on the payments will be deducted from the prepaid account of the user i.e., Integrated Electronic Wallet
Special toll accounts should be opened by the road users in order to manage their own vehicles and carry out any dues on their payments by means of a simple online system.
Registration of vehicles
All the vehicles that got registered in Abu Dhabi will get automatically registered accounts for free on the official registration launch ie., 30 August 2019.
An SMS will be sent to the account holders with the details of username and password of that account post which the account holders can add any further vehicles to the account depending on their necessity.
If the vehicle got registered in a place other than Abu Dhabi, the person who owns the vehicle should be registered in the system prior to passing through the toll gates.
In any case, where a non registered vehicle passes through the toll gates, a grace period usually of 10 business days will be given to the users starting from the time of crossing to get registered in the system absence of which might lead to a fine.
Fines
It is mandatory that the users should have enough credit in their account while passing through the toll gates. If they are not having enough credit in their accounts, the drivers will be given 5 days time to recharge or else a fine will be imposed on them.
A non-registered vehicle’s owner should pay fines of Dh 100 for the first day
Dh 200 on the second day,
Dh 400 on the third day and
so on up to Dh 10000 on the last day after the 10 working days grace period.
If anyone crosses the tollgate without enough amount in their account for registered vehicles outside Abu Dhabi, after the deadline of the grace period, a fine of Dh 50 per day.
If the users try to tamper the license plate just to escape from the fee payment, a fine of Dh 10000 will be incurred on them. Also, a fine of Dh 10,000 will be incurred in case of any damage done to e-payment machines or toll gates.
Vehicles like ambulances, vehicles that belong to the armed forces, civil defense vehicles, public buses, licensed taxis of Abu Dhabi, school buses, police and vehicles belonging to the Ministry of Interior will be excluded from this toll system.
Toll fees will also be excluded for the electric vehicles for a span of two years from the date when the system got activated.
Decree
President, his Highness, Sheikh Khalifa Zayed bin Al Nahyan had issued a decree to introduce toll gate system in order to ease the flow of traffic in Abu Dhabi.
Department of Transport will take the responsibility to bring the decree into action and to determine the areas to set up toll gates, timings, and the fees.
According to Law 17 of 2017, DOI’s Integrated Transport Centre this system will keep track of each vehicle that passes through the tolled areas.
If any user is found escaping the toll, a fine of Dh 10000 will be imposed on the driver. On a total, the fines should not go beyond Dh 25000 one year post the first offense.