Industry groups are urging Parliament to give carriers time to fix problems with the new road-charging system. Their bill would suspend penalties for app and platform errors outside the companies’ control.
The National Union of Road Hauliers of Romania (UNTRR) and the Concordia Employers’ Confederation are calling for urgent parliamentary consideration of a bill to suspend TollRo fines until April 1, 2027, or until the platform is fully operational. The groups say they support a per-kilometer road charge but oppose penalties for technical failures.
Under the law, a fine can reach 2,000 Romanian lei every 12 hours. Carriers cite an app that stops during a trip, incompatible phones, missing roads on the map, incorrectly listed traffic restrictions and an inability to issue route tickets through to a destination.
In a joint appeal on October 7, UNTRR and Concordia also proposed a review process before fines are imposed and faster platform fixes based on user feedback. UNTRR Secretary General Radu Dinescu said carriers are not refusing to pay. He said the TollRo charge can be six to ten times the annual 1,425-euro road vignette, depending on the truck’s age and route.
UNTRR President Daniel Niculescu described a discrepancy in the system: two phones calculated different charges for the same route. He also noted the practical problem facing drivers who are barred from using phones behind the wheel but are expected to monitor whether the app is working.
About 80% of Romanian carriers are small businesses with one to five trucks, said UNTRR board member Raluca Tache. She warned repeated fines could push such companies into bankruptcy. Concordia says road transport carries about 90% of the goods used by the population, including food and medicine.
TollRo went live on October 1. The website and app experienced problems after launch, and some card payments were not processed. Developer Vodafone Romania attributed the incidents to an exceptional number of simultaneous users and integration with other systems.
On launch day, interim Transport Minister Radu Miruță signed an order barring fines when the app malfunctions. UNTRR says the order covers only periods when the entire system is down and does not address all the problems carriers report. The groups are seeking a broader suspension of penalties until April 2027 or until the platform is fully operational.