The Nagdhunga Tunnel Construction Project has announced that toll fees will be collected from vehicles using the Nagdhunga tunnel road starting Kartik 15. The announcement was made through a public notice issued by the project, which stated that the toll is being levied in line with a decision of the Executive Committee of the Road Board Nepal taken on Ashoj 12. The government had earlier paved the way for the charge by publishing a notice in the Nepal Gazette on Chaitra 26, 2082 regarding the toll. Along with the start date, the project has also made public the toll rates applicable to different types of vehicles, ending the period in which motorists have been able to drive through the tunnel without paying a fee.

Decision and Gazette Notice Behind the Toll

According to the public notice, the toll on the Nagdhunga tunnel road is being levied in line with the decision of the Executive Committee of the Road Board Nepal taken on Ashoj 12. That decision now forms the administrative basis on which the project will begin collecting fees from vehicles passing through the tunnel from Kartik 15.

The groundwork had in fact been laid much earlier. The government had published a notice in the Nepal Gazette on Chaitra 26, 2082 regarding the toll, a formal step that put on record the state's intention to charge vehicles for using the tunnel route. With the Gazette notice already in place and the Executive Committee's decision subsequently taken, the project has now moved to inform the general public that collection will begin on the announced date.

The sequence of steps leading up to the start of toll collection can be summarised as follows:

  • Chaitra 26, 2082: The government published a notice in the Nepal Gazette regarding the toll on the Nagdhunga tunnel road.
  • Ashoj 12: The Executive Committee of the Road Board Nepal took the decision under which the toll is being levied.
  • Kartik 15: Toll collection begins on the Nagdhunga tunnel road, as announced by the project through its public notice.

The announcement was widely carried in the Nepali media, with Nagarik News and Ratopati both reporting that a fee will now apply to vehicles using the tunnel.

Toll Rates Made Public by Vehicle Type

Alongside the start date, the Nagdhunga Tunnel Construction Project has made public the toll rates applicable to different types of vehicles. The published schedule sets out which vehicles will have to pay how much once collection begins, allowing drivers and transport operators to see in advance the amount due for their particular category of vehicle.

The reports, including coverage by Nepal Press, have focused on precisely this question of which vehicles will pay and at what rate, underscoring that the charge will not be uniform across all traffic. Instead, the rates published by the project differentiate between the various types of vehicles that use the tunnel road.

Drivers, transport entrepreneurs and members of the general public who regularly travel on the route have been advised to take note of the published rates ahead of the Kartik 15 start date, so that they are aware of the toll applicable to their vehicle when collection begins.

What Changes for Road Users

From Kartik 15, using the Nagdhunga tunnel road will no longer be free of charge. Every vehicle falling within the categories covered by the published rates will be required to pay the notified toll, in accordance with the decision of the Road Board Nepal's Executive Committee and the notice previously published in the Nepal Gazette.

Until now, vehicles have been able to pass through the tunnel without paying any fee. The public notice makes clear that this changes from the announced date, marking the point at which the tunnel route formally enters its toll-collection phase. The notice serves to inform the general public and road users in advance so that they are not caught unprepared by the new charge.

Key Points for Commuters

  • Toll collection on the Nagdhunga tunnel road begins on Kartik 15.
  • The toll is being levied under a decision of the Executive Committee of the Road Board Nepal taken on Ashoj 12.
  • The government had published a notice in the Nepal Gazette on Chaitra 26, 2082 regarding the toll.
  • The Nagdhunga Tunnel Construction Project has made public the toll rates applicable to different types of vehicles, and drivers should check the rate for their category before travelling.

The announcement marks a significant step for the Nagdhunga Tunnel Construction Project, which will now begin generating revenue from the tunnel road in line with the decisions and notifications that authorised the toll. For the thousands of drivers who use the route, the practical effect is straightforward: from Kartik 15 onwards, a fee will apply, and the amount payable will depend on the type of vehicle being driven, as set out in the rates the project has made public.

Further details of the announcement, including the vehicle-wise breakdown highlighted in the media coverage, are available in the reports published by Nagarik News, Ratopati and Nepal Press.