During this year’s Spring Festival holiday, my country will continue to implement a toll-free policy for small passenger cars. The toll-free period is from 0:00 on February 9 (New Year’s Eve) to 24:00 on February 17 (the eighth day of the first lunar month). The deadline is when the vehicle leaves the exit toll lane. The time shall prevail.
On February 18, some netizens posted a video saying that at a highway toll station in Hunan, a driver was asked to pay a toll because he missed the Spring Festival highway toll-free deadline by a few minutes. The driver refused to pay because he was stuck in traffic and was delayed. Someone else posted a video saying that a high-speed toll station in Jiangxi extended the free policy for about half an hour. "Vehicles that have entered the ramp before 24:00 on the 17th will be free of charge. Vehicles that failed to enter the ramp before 24:00 and are still blocked will not be free."
■ On February 19, the reporter contacted the staff of the management department of this high-speed toll station in Jiangxi. They said that the statement that some vehicles passing through the toll station after 12 o'clock in the evening are still free is a rumor. “The deadline for the free expressway policy for cars during the Spring Festival is unified across the country, and there is no possibility of relaxing it.”
■ Yin Qingli, a lawyer from Beijing R&F Law Firm, said, "If you fail to 'get stuck' and are required to collect expressway tolls, and you are blocked at a toll station, you may be required to bear criminal liability in serious cases."
A toll station in Jiangxi offers half an hour of free "grace"?
Toll station management: Rumor!
According to the Ministry of Transport's "Notice on Optimizing the Toll Free Period for Small Passenger Vehicles on Toll Roads during the Spring Festival Holiday in 2024", the free toll period for small passenger vehicles during the Spring Festival Holiday in 2024 is from 0:00 on February 9 (New Year's Eve) to February 17 (the first month of the new year). Eighth day of the lunar month) 24 o'clock.
However, on the evening of February 18, some netizens announced that after 24:00 on the 17th, the Jiangxi Communications Investment Daguang Expressway Hengshi Toll Station still implemented a toll-free policy for some vehicles exiting the expressway from the toll station. The news stated that "there was a traffic jam at that time, so vehicles that had entered the ramp before 24:00 on the 17th were free of charge. Vehicles that failed to enter the ramp before 24:00 were not free."
Regarding this news, some netizens said that such measures are "more humane". But some people say that this approach undermines the policy. "Since you are traveling, you need to take the risk of traffic jams into consideration, or if you see that the free period is about to pass, you can get off the expressway at the nearest toll station."
On February 19, the reporter contacted the Jiangxi Communications Investment Ji'andong Management Center, the management department of the toll station involved. A staff member of the center said that the deadline for the free highway policy for cars during the Spring Festival is unified across the country. Regarding the video, They are also understanding the situation, but it is definitely a rumor to still implement the free policy for cars after the free period.
Multiple expressway management departments:
The free time is unified across the country and cannot be “gracefully extended”
On February 18, a netizen posted a video saying that just after 24:00 on February 17, at the toll station in Yanling County, Zhuzhou, Hunan, a vehicle was blocked at the toll station and refused to pay because it missed the free policy (see the picture on the right above). The reporter saw from the video that some vehicles were blocked at the toll station and refused to leave, and some drivers shouted at the staff at the toll station. According to the netizen who posted the video, a driver was required to pay tolls for the whole journey because he missed the free time on the Spring Festival expressway. The driver believed that the traffic jam in front of the toll station delayed his departure time.
On February 19, the reporter learned from Hunan Expressway Group Co., Ltd. that free admission for cars on holidays is stipulated by the Ministry of Transport and other departments. Due to traffic jams, failure to get off the expressway on time will be charged. As the expressway management department, it is There is no such thing as "grace" permissions.
On February 19, the reporter also contacted the staff of the expressway service centers in Henan, Hubei and Guangdong respectively. When asked whether they could still enjoy the free policy if they got off the expressway a few minutes after the deadline for the implementation of the free policy for cars during the Spring Festival. Staff of the local expressway management department stated that tolls are billed in strict accordance with the requirements of the Ministry of Transport. The billing system is networked nationwide and is not managed by local governments. There is no situation where tolls can still be exempted after more than one or two minutes. .
The reporter noticed that in July 2012, the Ministry of Transport and other departments issued the "Implementation Plan for Exempting Small Passenger Vehicle Tolls on Major Holidays", which specifically mentioned that "for vehicles that meet the toll-free conditions, it is recommended to reasonably plan and choose travel time and route". "For those who may not be able to leave the destination toll station during the free period, you can choose a suitable toll station in advance based on the actual time and location of your journey, drive off the expressway before the end of the free period, and then re-enter the expressway. Driving. In this way, the amount of payment after arriving at the destination toll station is only the amount payable for the section of the road after re-acquiring the card, not the amount payable for the entire journey."
Lawyer interpretation
Failed due to "stuck point"
Blocking toll booths may lead to criminal liability
On February 19, lawyer Yin Qingli of Beijing R&F Law Firm stated that the "Implementation Plan for Exempting Small Passenger Vehicle Tolls on Major Holidays" is a measure to facilitate the people and is a measure based on the sacrifice of the economic interests of paid toll management sites and operators. Under this circumstance, if the management department is asked to consider the so-called free service beyond the free period due to other factors, it will inevitably create another kind of inequality and a series of relief issues. Therefore, setting up "stuck points" to charge before 24:00 is an act that complies with the requirements of laws and regulations. It is not only legal but also reasonable.
Yin Qingli said that the "Implementation Plan for Exempting Small Passenger Vehicle Tolls on Major Holidays" has been in effect for nearly 12 years, and vehicle drivers are fully able to anticipate and be informed of possible timeout issues during application.
"For related reasons, drivers who are 'stuck' at a toll station without being free of charge and are stuck at the toll station, causing serious congestion of vehicles and roads behind them, may be subject to administrative penalties in violation of the Public Security Management Punishment Law, or may be in violation of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China Article 291 stipulates that criminal liability shall be borne by people who gather to disrupt the order of stations, docks, civil aviation terminals, shopping malls, parks, theaters, exhibitions, sports venues or other public places, as well as block traffic or disrupt traffic order. ." Yin Qingli said, "Even if there is a dispute, the driver should complain to the Consumers Association and others with the fee receipt after settling the fee, or he can also defend his rights through civil litigation."
Fu Jian, director of Henan Zejin Law Firm, believes that the policy of waiving tolls reflects the country’s concern for people’s livelihood. Free passage has clear start and end times, and strict implementation of the regulations is a reflection of the spirit of the rule of law and ensures the fairness of the policy. Frequent changes in rules or extension of free time may lead to management confusion.
"Drivers should abide by traffic rules and are not allowed to park illegally in areas such as toll stations, otherwise it may involve illegal issues. Blocking the toll station for a long time may affect traffic order and even constitute a violation of public security management," Fu Jian said.
Chengdu Commercial Daily-Red Star News reporter Fu Yao
Intern Wu Jiaxin