Thiruvananthapuram: When the damaged portion of the National Highway passing through Kooriyad in Malappuram is rebuilt as a viaduct, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) stands to earn significant additional revenue and that too without spending a rupee.

The entire cost of constructing the new viaduct will be borne by the contracting company, not the NHAI. Yet, the completion of the structure will lead to a hike in the user fee (toll) and all this increased revenue will go directly to the NHAI. In effect, road users will end up paying more, while the NHAI stands to gain effortlessly.

As per existing toll regulations, any stretch of highway that includes a flyover, viaduct or tunnel attracts a higher user fee. Usually, the toll for such segments is nearly ten times that of a standard road. Toll plazas are usually set up at intervals of 60 kilometres and the fee is calculated based on the rate per kilometre across the full 60 km.

However, if a one-kilometre-long flyover or viaduct is included within that stretch, the toll is calculated as if the road is 69 kilometres long.
In the case of Kooriyad, the proposed viaduct will be around 400 metres long. This will result in road users paying an additional toll equivalent to four extra kilometres. Meanwhile, the NHAI is also expected to receive an additional fund of Rs. 12 crore from the contractor as a penalty.