PUNE: At least 1.2 lakh commuters would soon receive refunds totalling Rs 5.16 crore for toll collected during the 32-hour traffic gridlock after a gas tanker turned on its side near Khopoli on the Mumbai-Pune expressway on Feb 3, MSRDC officials said on Saturday.The refunds would cover tolls on both the expressway and the Pune-Bengaluru highway. “We have the data of the commuters from whom toll was collected even after orders were issued to suspend it following the gas tanker mishap. The amount will be reimbursed to commuters in their FASTag accounts in the coming week,” an MSRDC official told TOI.Last week, Maharashtra State Road Development Cor-poration (MSRDC) had assured that it would return the toll money collected during the traffic disruption on the Mumbai leg of the expressway for over a day. MSRDC had also sought detailed FASTag deduction data from its concessionaire, IRB Infrastructure, after toll collection was halted in view of the mishap and the resultant traffic jam.The official said IRB was told to clarify whether toll was collected despite being informed to suspend the collection. “It is believed that till the barriers were opened, there might have been transactions where funds were deducted from FASTag. We had sought data on the number of commuters whose money was deducted after the order was issued to suspend the toll collection. Those amounts will be refunded,” he said.The Feb 3 mishap resulted in severe congestion, leaving thousands of commuters stranded on the expressway without basic amenities. Travellers, including senior citizens, women and children, faced significant hardships, with many forced to cancel plans. Public anger grew when reports emerged that toll collection persisted at the Khalapur plaza for some time.Opposition politicians, including MNS chief Raj Thackeray, had then demanded that MSRDC, IRB and the traffic police ensure refunds to the affected commuters. The mishap also highlighted gaps in expressway infrastructure, including inadequate amenities and poor emergency response mechanisms. Critics accused authorities of prioritising toll collection over commuter welfare.Activist groups, Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat and All India Consumer Rights Organisation, have also issued legal notices to MSRDC and disaster management officials, seeking accountability and the creation of clear policies to prevent such incidents across national highways. Their representative Vijay Sagar told TOI that the notice sought to fix responsibility for the failure to provide essential facilities to commuters during the 32-hour standstill. It also recommends formulation of a clear policy and concrete measures to prevent similar hardships in the future, not only on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway but on highways across the country.
