New Delhi, Jan. 21 -- Motorists with pending e-challans or unpaid toll dues may lose access to highways under proposed changes to motor vehicle legislation that the Centre is likely to announce during the budget session of Parliament, according to two government officials close to the discussions.

The Union road ministry's proposed tweaks to the Motor Vehicles Act (MVA), 1988, also seek to empower enforcement agencies to detain vehicles at toll plazas for evading user charges.

Officials believe restricting access to India's 45,428-kilometre toll road network will nudge motorists towards greater compliance and improve safety on Indian roads, which has the dubious distinction of recording the world's highest number of accidents and fatali...