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Sharjah’s controversial toll for heavy trucks has been causing complications after its first full day of operations on Saturday.
Inevitably, queues were long at certain times of the day, as drivers who reached the front discovered that the payment could only be made with the exact money as change would not be given.
On the first day of operations, the Sharjah Directorate of Public Works reported that the operations had gone smoothly, and there was excess capacity in the system: “We have estimated for the passage of 4,750 to 5,250 trucks per day and we have already distributed informative booklets to heavy truck drivers informing them about the toll gate operation,” said Omran Al Kumairi, director of the traffic toll gate project.
However, some truck drivers found that the process was slow, and were frustrated by the system which charges AED100 per truck, with an additional AED10 levied for each ton that the vehicle is overweight by. Exact money has to be used, as toll operators apparently do not have the facility to give change.
Other operators didn’t find any significant problems. Al Ghurair Foods, based in Dubai said that its driver experienced ‘neither delay nor problems encountered yesterday’ and that the gate would need to be in operation for some months before it would draw any ‘reliable conclusions’.
For the time being at least there will be the option of turning around for drivers who do not have the correct sum. Later, a system of fines are to be introduced for those without money.
Also planned for the near future is some form of cashless, pre-paid card for drivers to carry. However Sharjah DPW officials declined to say when this might happen.
The toll is to be used for road improvements, as they become damaged from the very heavy loads from trucks carrying quarry products.
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FEATURED COMMENT
One option is that Sharjah should take the services of DXB salik service provider, in that case only a e-gate has to be