New Delhi, Dec. 23 -- At the Kalindi Kunj border, where a bridge spans the Yamuna connecting Delhi and Noida, vehicles crawl forward in a queue that stretches nearly half a kilometre. This scene of near-constant gridlock is not an anomaly but a daily reality at one of the Capital's busiest entry points. Despite crores spent on technological upgrades and years of interventions, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi's (MCD) toll collection system remains a primary cause of severe traffic congestion, contributing to both commuter misery and elevated pollution levels.

The snarls persist even though the plaza is equipped with a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) system, introduced to enable seamless digital toll collection.

In practice, the ...