FASTag Annual Pass: Earlier this year the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways launched the FASTag Annual Pass designed to make commuting on national highways easier and more pocket-friend. The pass is valid for one year or a maximum of 200 trips whichever is earlier for just Rs 3000. The FASTag annual pass was launched on August 15 2024 on the occasion of Indias 78th Independence Day and facilitates hassle-free travel for commuters on national highways and NHAI expressways across the country by eliminating the need to repeatedly pay toll at toll booths. According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways the annual FASTag is only valid only for non-commercial private vehicles such as cars jeeps and vans. How to avail FASTag annual pass? The FasTAG Annual Pass can be availed activated and renewed on Rajmarg Yatra App NHAI website and the Ministry of Transport website according to the Ministry.  Making the announcement ahead of its August 15 launch earlier this year Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said the FASTag annual pass aims to deliver a smoother and hassle-free travel experience private vehicle owners across the country. This policy addresses long-standing concerns regarding toll plazas located within a 60 km range and simplifies toll payments through a single affordable transaction. By reducing wait times easing congestion and minimizing disputes at toll plazas the Annual Pass aims to deliver a faster and smoother travel experience for millions of private vehicle owners he had said. The Minister noted that the annual pass will make travel on national highways and expressways pocket-friendly as toll charges on national highways that came to about Rs 10000 earlier will now come to Rs 3000 with the annual pass which means a single toll crossing would cost just Rs 15 on average from the current Rs 50. How FASTag pass works? The FASTag Annual pass is linked to the RFID-based FASTag system and will be automatically activated at all toll plazas within a radius of 60 kilometres opening the the gates after the FASTag is scanned. Here are some key points you need to know about the FASTag pass; The pass is only valid for vehicles with a registered FASTag on the windshield. It is non-transferable and will deactivate if used on another vehicle. Separate vehicles require separate FASTag registration. The annual cannot be issued on FASTag registered vehicles who only have a chassis number. Car owners will need to update the Vehicle Registration Number (VRN) to activate the Annual Pass. Why FASTag annual pass isnt valid for THESE highways/expressways? Notably the FASTag annual pass is only valid on toll booths located on the National Highways and Expressways operated by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) such as the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway. But it wont work on expressways or highways operated by state governments like Yamuna Expressway the Meerut Expressway the Agra-Lucknow expressway and the Purvanchal Expressway among others. The toll booths on these expressways and highways will only accept already existing regular FASTag system as per officials.