Can you drive on highways without ETC installed in 2021?
1 Answers
It is possible to drive on highways without ETC. According to the regulations of the State Council, starting from 2020, vehicles without ETC cannot enjoy toll discounts. In the future, only one manual lane will be retained at highway toll stations, and tolls can only be paid through manual lanes. Additionally, newly installed ETC devices cannot be used on highways immediately; they must be activated before normal use. During free holiday periods, highways can still be used. For users who have already installed ETC, passing through ETC lanes will not incur charges. ETC charging principle: There will be one or more ETC lanes on highways. Through microwave dedicated short-range communication between the vehicle's electronic tag installed on the windshield and the microwave antenna in the ETC lane at the toll station, and using computer networking technology for backend settlement with banks, the purpose of paying tolls without stopping at road and bridge toll stations is achieved. All of this is based on the principle of passing first and deducting fees later. Benefits of installing ETC: Time-saving: Eliminates the hassle of waiting in queues; Green and eco-friendly: Green and low-carbon, vehicles pass through toll stations without stopping, reducing noise and exhaust emissions, and minimizing pollution; Cost-saving: Reduces expenses, decreases the frequency of vehicle starts and brakes, and lowers wear and fuel consumption. Improved efficiency: The theoretical efficiency of ETC lanes can be increased by 2-3 times, making traditional ETC updates faster and more high-tech. Compared to license plate payment, ETC technology is more mature and advantageous. More policy support: The State Council clearly stated in the "13th Five-Year Plan for the Development of a Modern Comprehensive Transportation System" that "by 2020, the interoperability of transportation smart cards in key city clusters will be basically achieved, and the proportion of vehicles equipped with ETC will be significantly increased." It also explicitly set the goal of "achieving a 50% ETC usage rate for road passenger vehicles by 2020" in the main indicators of the "13th Five-Year" comprehensive transportation development plan. More future possibilities: In addition to continuously improving the convenience of ETC installation and usage and the ETC passenger vehicle usage rate, the future will also promote the use of ETC for trucks and explore the deep integration of the ETC system with vehicle-to-vehicle communication, vehicle-road coordination, and other smart transportation development directions, providing comprehensive travel services for car owners. This means more application scenarios will support ETC applications.
