The Karnataka State Travel Agents Association said residents of both urban and rural areas of Bengaluru are being forced to pay tolls even for short-distance daily journeys into the city. | Photo Credit: K. MURALI KUMAR
The Karnataka State Tourism Operators Association (KSTOA) has urged the state government to reconsider the placement of toll booths at Bengaluru entry points, citing increased financial burden on daily commuters.
In a letter recently addressed to Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, the association said that residents of Bengaluru’s urban and rural areas are forced to pay tolls even for daily short-distance journeys into the city for work, education, healthcare and business. The association pointed out that the expansion of city limits within Greater Bengaluru has resulted in several toll plazas being placed within just 10 km of the city limits.
According to KSTOA, prevailing norms generally allow toll exemption within 20 km radius of urban areas. Therefore, collecting tolls almost at city entrances raises concerns about equity and fairness.
KSTOA President K. Radhakrishna Holla said, “Bengaluru region currently has 13 toll plazas spread over about 236 km of toll highways, the highest concentration in Karnataka. In comparison, districts like Belagavi, Chitradurga, Tumakuru and Hassan have longer stretches of toll highways but significantly fewer toll plazas.”
He further said that daily commuters to Bengaluru are already facing severe traffic congestion, rising fuel prices and loss of productive time. Repeated toll payments further increase the financial pressure on working-class and middle-class families.
As the city’s geographic boundaries and administrative structure have changed, the association said in the letter that toll policies must be updated to reflect the city’s new reality. It suggested shifting the toll plazas further away from the city limits to avoid unfairly penalizing the commuter for entering Bengaluru.
Published – 29 Jan 2026 20:59 IST
