taken initiative in a move towards going online by issuing e-tickets. Following the recent move to an e-ticketing system by Lahore Traffic Police, the Motorway Policehave begun its first phase of transferring the existing system to online e-ticketing Motorway police have already issued more than 100,000 e-challans to people traveling via the motorways.
The new system has been developed by a team from Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB). The team was led by Badar Munir. Other team members included Adnan Khan, Bilal Hussain, Bilal Ibrahim, Jibran Ali Sayyed, Rehan Saleem, Ryan H Bhatti, Sohail Ashraf Mughal and Zunair Ahmed.
The Past and The Present of Ticketing Traffic Offenders
Prior to this, National Highways and Motorways Police (NH & MP) used the manual paper ticketing system for all traffic rules violations. Rule violators at that time, used to pay fines while exiting the motorway via any interchange.
The new system will use interconnected devices. Patrol officers will be provided with a handheld device which will be connected with a central server located in Islamabad. The server will synchronize data pertaining to all traffic violations, travelers and ticket statuses.
The handheld devices would be normal Android smartphones or tablets linked to the e-ticketing system via a connected app. The officers have been provided with Huawei tablets at the moment and these tablets will be connected to a mobile printer using Bluetooth. Officers will issue challan using the app and a printed challan receipt will be handed over to the violator. The devices will be connected to the server using Zong’s 3G services.
As far as the security aspect is concerned, only registered users and devices will be able to connect with the server. At the moment, PITB server hosts all the traveler data, but soon, it will be transferred to Motorway Police’s data center. However, before that happens, the staff will have to familiarize themselves with the new hardware and software.
When a ticket is issued, the violator will also get an SMS detailing the violation and the fined amount. Of course, proof of ticket would be the printed receipt. The N-5 DIG Faran Baig said “The test run of e-challan system will help mitigate malpractice, improve the efficiency and vigilance of motorway police and facilitate motorists.” The new system will also allow the police to examine trends in violations on specific roads and improve traffic management.
Motorway officials also informed that the department is working on a plan to introduce an easy payment system which will allow travelers to pay toll taxes using mobile phones and credit cards. The proposed solution will help travelers save time and motorway police will be able to tackle the long traffic jams at toll plazas.
The Motorway Police department has already introduced an e-tag system in cooperation with National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) which lets travellers use prepaid tags. However, the e-tag registration process is quite complex, it will require time for citizens to trust the efficacy of the new system.
