LUCKNOW, March 21 -- Highway travel in Uttar Pradesh is getting a major, high-speed upgrade, allowing commuters to cruise down the road without having to stop at the toll plaza. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is rolling out the state's first trial of the Multi-Lane Free Flow (MLFF) tolling system on the upcoming Lucknow-Kanpur access-controlled expressway (NE-6). The 63-km stretch, developed with 3D imaging, promises to reduce travel time to around 40 minutes from the current 1.5-3 hours, and is expected to be opened for commuters before May. Under this system, a barrier-free toll gate is equipped with high-resolution cameras and sensors on overhead gantries enabled to read the number plate and FASTag to deduct charges as vehicles pass by. "Trials are to be done at up to 40 toll gates in the country. In UP, the first will be on the Lucknow- Kanpur highway," said Vishal Gautam, CGM (tech) and regional officer, UP west, NHAI. On this 63-km stretch, a commuter's fast tag will be screened at the entry point, and the charge will be deducted at the exit. The mechanism will eliminate conflict often reported from toll gates due to delay in reading fast tag and long queues. Entry and exit will be from multiple lanes and without stopping the vehicles. The expressway has five proposed entry and exit points - Miranpur Pinwat, Khandedev, Bani in Lucknow, Amarsas on the Unnao-Lalganj stretch and Azad Nagar near the Shuklaganj bypass. This system helps remove physical barriers at toll booths, thereby eliminating traffic congestion, saving time and ensuring seamless, non-stop journeys. The stretch will connect the Lucknow Outer Ring Road to the Kanpur Outer Ring Road, which means people commuting to Ghatampur, Hamirpur, Kannauj, Jhansi and Prayagraj from here will not be required to enter Kanpur. Similarly, commuters travelling from Kanpur side and wanting to go to Barabanki and Ayodhya would not be required to enter Lucknow. It will have 18 km of elevated roadway and 45 km of greenfield construction, said officials. Staff will remain deployed to deal with any complications. If the toll charge is not deducted due to a technical reason or low balance, the information is recorded and sent for further action/transaction. Under the system, toll charge will be deducted only at exit points after calculation of charges according to the distance travelled from the entry point. The NHAI launched India's first barrier-free MLFF tolling trial at the Choryasi/Kamrej plaza near Surat, Gujarat, this February. At the entry point of the UP highway, the vehicle number and fast tag details will be fed into the server, and upon exit, charges will be deducted....