Updated on 15/10/2019: In a major new development, the traffic authorities have announced a free trial period for the new toll gates in Abu Dhabi. According to Abu Dhabi Police, the new Toll System will not charge motorists till January 1, 2019. This initiative has been taken to allow motorists more time to complete their registration with the new toll system.
A new Electronic Toll System will be implemented in Abu Dhabi on October 15, 2019. This new toll system is like the Salik System that has been operational in Dubai since 2007. The new system will help authorities in monitoring vehicles on the roads heading towards Abu Dhabi and will automate toll collection. Motorists will need to follow some important guidelines issued by authorities regarding the new Toll System in order to avoid hefty fines.
The reason behind the launch of the new Electronic Toll System is to make toll collection easier and to urge motorists to use public transport in place of private vehicles. The new toll system is also expected to promote the sales of Electric Vehicles (EVs) as all the newly registered EVs with the new Electronic System will be exempted from Toll Tax for two years. This is a massive incentive offered to motorists in the UAE for buying electric vehicles as part of the efforts of the UAE government to improve the air quality in the country.
Everything You Need to Know About the New Electronic Toll System
The new toll system was first introduced in Dubai in 2007 and the Abu Dhabi Department of Traffic (DoT) is now all set to implement a similar system in the emirate. According to the announcement of the Traffic Department, the New Electronic Toll System will be implemented on select roads in Abu Dhabi on October 15, 2019. The Electronic System will automate the toll collection and all registered vehicles will be able to enter and go out of Abu Dhabi in a hassle-free manner.
The implementation of the Electronic System was proposed in Abu Dhabi for the first time in 2017 by the President, His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan who issued a decree to introduce the toll system in Abu Dhabi to ease traffic on roads. According to the decree, the Department of Traffic will be responsible for implementing the new toll system and managing timings and fees of the system.
Here is everything that you need to know about the new Electronic Toll System in Abu Dhabi:
- The new toll system will be rolled out on all four locations heading to Abu Dhabi including Al Maqta Bridge, Musafah Bidge, Sheikh Zayed Bridge and Sheikh Khalifa Bridge.
- The new toll system in Abu Dhabi will automatically deduct toll fee when vehicles will pass through the toll gates fitted on the designated locations.
- The Abu Dhabi based vehicles will be automatically registered with the new toll system. Account holders will receive an SMS message with their username and password for the account so that they can add information about their vehicles as required.
- Motorists will need to update their license plate number in the account as the new toll system will collect toll fees by identifying the vehicles with their license plate number.
- An Integrated Electronic Payment Wallet (e-wallet) will be created, which motorists will need to recharge so that the toll fee can be deducted from their e-wallet whenever they pass through the toll gates. Motorists can recharge their e-wallet through the e-payment machines distributed across Abu Dhabi.
- For motorists with vehicles registered outside Abu Dhabi, they will need to create an account and get their vehicles registered with the new toll system before they pass through the new toll gates in Abu Dhabi. If they pass through the toll gates without registration, they will be provided with a grace period of 10 days to register with the system otherwise they will have to pay fines.
- Motorists will need to pay AED 4 as toll fee during the peak hours (7:00 AM to 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM from Saturday to Thursday). The toll fee charged from motorists on Friday and during the public holidays will be AED 2. A maximum of AED 16 can be charged as toll fee per vehicle in a single day.
https://twitter.com/ITCAbudhabi/status/1154438917753626625
Fines
There are some serious fines that motorists will have to face for several violations related to the new toll system in Abu Dhabi. Users must have enough credit in their accounts when they pass through the toll gates. There is a relaxation in this regard for motorists with their vehicles registered in Abu Dhabi. Such motorists can pay the toll fees according to the post-payment system which refers to paying the accumulated toll fees during any licensing procedure at any time of the year.
Here are the fines that motorists can face if they don’t follow the guidelines issued by the authorities.:
- Motorists with their vehicles registered outside Abu Dhabi will be given a five-day grace period if they pass through the toll gates without having enough credit in their accounts. Motorists will have to top up their account during these five days, otherwise, they will be incurred with a fine of AED 50 per day till they don’t pay the toll fee.
- Traffic fine for crossing the toll gate with a non-registered vehicle after the grace period of 10 days will be AED 100 for the first day, AED 200 for the second day and AED 400 for the third day. A maximum fine of AED 10,000 can be incurred against a motorist for this violation.
- Motorists can pay a whopping fine of AED 10,000 for tempering with the number plate of their vehicles to evade the payment of fees. In addition to that, a similar fine can be incurred for causing damage to the e-payment machines fitted across the UAE.
- Ambulances, government vehicles, Armed Forces vehicles, taxis licensed in Abu Dhabi, school buses, trailers and motorcycles will be exempted from the fees.
- Electric Vehicles (EVs) will also be exempted from the toll fees for the first two years of registration with the new system.
#AbuDhabi toll system operated by @AbuDhabiDoT & @ITCAbuDhabi, launching 15 October, is set to reduce traffic in the city, ease congestion for commuters & encourage more sustainable options like public transport, ride sharing & electric cars, which are fee exempt for 2 years. pic.twitter.com/rVKHozhgMf
— مكتب أبوظبي الإعلامي (@admediaoffice) July 25, 2019
Bottom-line
The new toll system will be implemented in Abu Dhabi under Law No. 17 of 2017, which states that the Department of Transport is responsible for monitoring every vehicle that passes through the designated tolled areas. The new system will help authorities monitor vehicles more effectively and will make toll fee collection easier.
The Salik System was introduced in Dubai for the first time in 2007 and following its success, a similar electronic system will now be implemented in Abu Dhabi. The biggest reason behind implementing the automated toll system in Abu Dhabi is to reduce the number of private vehicles on the UAE roads and to urge people to use public transport and other sustainable commuting options like electric vehicles.
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