Fastag to be introduced in railway parking grounds

Kochi: The railway parking facilities are likely to undergo a facelift to suit the demands of the modern times. The Fastag system that was introduced as a pilot project at the Thiruvananthapuram central railway station would soon be extended to other main railway stations. The new system would begin functioning at the Ernakulam South Railway Station from next week.

Fastag readers and boom barriers would be installed on both the ends of the parking ground under the project which is funded by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). When the vehicle moves past the reader, the duration of parking would be noted and money would be deducted from the Fastag account. Information regarding this would be uploaded in the computers operated by both the railway department and the contractor. Meanwhile, the vehicle owner would receive SMS alerts informing him/her about the parking time and the amount deducted from their account. In case the vehicle does not have Fastag, the owners could make payments using credit/debit cards or digital payment via UPI.