Delays at inter-state check-posts and other toll plazas to goods carrier vehicles cause an annual loss of $5.5 billion to the Indian economy, says a study by Transport Corporation of India (TCI) and the Indian Institute of management, Kolkata.    

Three years ago a cargo-laden truck from Delhi would take an average of 102 hours to trundle across 2,000-odd kms to reach Bangalore. Today, it takes about 94 hours, thanks to Indian roads acquiring a fresh coat of asphalt over this period.    

But, at that time, the truck had to go through 30 stops en-route, including State border checks, tax and toll collections. And today, the same truck would have to hit the pause button at least 41 times for the same exercise. A wave-through at a toll plaza alone cost the truck owner an average 10 minutes.    

These are some raw data collected by Transport Corporation of India (TCI) and the Indian Institute of management, Kolkata, earlier this year, as part of a study on Operational Efficiency of Freight Transportation by Road in India.    

Another study by DHL and Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India last year had revealed that a goods carrier crossing a State border in India may have to wait anywhere between two to 24 hours to get the necessary clearances, whereas in China it would take between 15 minutes and two hours and in the EU just a few minutes.    

What all this means for Indian road cargo operators is that notwithstanding the investments claimed to be going into improvement of road transportation, they are no better off in terms of operational and cost efficiencies. And this continues to gnaw at the profitability of not only logistics operators but also Indian corporate houses, as they have to cough up more for transportation of raw materials and finished products.