Toll trouble: Hoteliers demand relief on landslide-hit highway

As the monsoon rains trigger frequent landslides and long traffic snarls along the Parwanoo-Solan-Shimla highway, various hotel associations have urged the district administration to suspend toll collection at the Sanwara-based tax barrier and introduce FASTag facilities at state entry points near Parwanoo.

Tourists and hoteliers alike are raising concerns over long delays, with visitors spending hours in traffic due to poor road conditions and bottlenecks at toll collection points. The Sanwara toll plaza has become a major source of frustration, with queues stretching for kilometers, especially during weekends when tourist influx peaks.

Devinder Verma, president of the Chail Hoteliers Association, highlighted the worsening situation on the highway, pointing out that landslides have rendered large stretches of the hill-facing lanes inoperable. “Each spell of rain brings down boulders from the excavated hills, further worsening the road condition,” he said.

Verma recounted instances where tourists who left Delhi in the morning arrived in Chail as late as 8 pm due to long halts at the toll plaza and congested stretches near the Timber Trail Resorts entry point. The Chakki Mor stretch, in particular, has turned into a dangerous bottleneck with only two of the four lanes operational, one for uphill and one for downhill traffic. A recent landslide even brought traffic to a complete standstill for hours.

The hotel industry has attributed these issues to poor maintenance of vulnerable road sections and delayed response from authorities. “Visitors come to Himachal seeking peace and pleasant weather, but they end up stuck in traffic for hours, often with no facilities in sight,” said a hotelier from Kasauli.

Multiple hotel associations from Shimla, Kasauli and Kinnaur have jointly submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner, Solan, requesting immediate relief measures. Their demands include suspending toll tax at Sanwara during the peak tourist season and installing FASTag-enabled lanes at Parwanoo to ease the entry process and reduce traffic buildup.

In response, Deputy Commissioner Manmohan Sharma said the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has deployed staff to ensure quick debris clearance and road maintenance. “Traffic jams have reduced in the last few days and are being closely managed by the police,” he said. He also noted that toll collection had been suspended earlier during a similar situation and that ongoing slope protection work—such as wire netting—should mitigate damage during the current monsoon.

With the tourist season in full swing, stakeholders are hopeful for swift intervention to restore smooth travel and safeguard tourism in the region.

Himachal Tribune