FASTag parking payments suspended at Delhi airport T3 after NHAI flags entry restrictions

FASTag-based parking payments at Delhi airport's Terminal 3 arrivals were temporarily suspended on October 14 after the parking operator was found to be using the system to restrict vehicle entry rather than solely collect parking fees, The Times of India reported. The Indian Highways Management Company Limited (IHMCL), a company promoted by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), directed the bank handling FASTag transactions at the terminal to discontinue using the system for entry restrictions. According to The Times of India, IHMCL warned that failure to comply could result in the bank being removed from the electronic toll collection arrangement for parking facilities. The Indian Express separately reported that NHAI had instructed IDFC Bank, which handles FASTag payments at the airport, to ensure the facility was used only for collecting parking charges. Similar directions were issued to other airport parking acquirer banks. What triggered NHAI's intervention? The action followed complaints that vehicles without active FASTags were being denied access to the Terminal 3 arrival pickup lane and diverted to the Multi-Level Car Parking (MLCP) facility. Officials told The Indian Express that the diversions were causing some motorists to exceed the eight-minute free waiting period, resulting in parking charges. Former NITI Aayog vice-chairperson Rajiv Kumar also flagged the issue on X on October 13, alleging that vehicles with annual FASTag passes were being denied access to Terminal 3 departure lanes unless their regular FASTag accounts had sufficient balance. Responding to the complaint, IHMCL clarified that FASTag was intended for collecting parking payments and could not be used to enforce entry restrictions. Delhi airport's eight-minute parking rule Delhi airport introduced an eight-minute free waiting facility for private vehicles at Terminal 3's arrival Lane 3 on October 23, 2024, to reduce congestion and regulate vehicle movement. Under the existing arrangement, vehicles staying between nine and 13 minutes are charged Rs 250, while those exceeding 13 minutes face a Rs 500 fee. The airport's original announcement described the facility as available to private vehicles with FASTag. According to officials cited by The Indian Express, mandatory FASTag-based entry restrictions particularly affected Delhi-NCR motorists who did not maintain active tags or sufficient balances because their routine commutes did not involve highway toll plazas. Can FASTag annual pass holders use airport parking? NHAI's FASTag annual pass is valid at designated national highway and national expressway toll plazas, not airport parking facilities. According to IHMCL's published guidelines, FASTag continues to function as a regular payment instrument at parking facilities, with applicable charges deducted from the linked account. The guidelines distinguish between annual-pass benefits and regular FASTag payments. NHAI's latest directions concern the use of FASTag to restrict entry, not the collection of applicable parking charges.