A Japanese expressway operator says it will not charge drivers who passed through its electronic toll gates, which experienced a widespread system failure last month.



Central Nippon Expressway Company's electronic toll collections shut down for 38 hours on April 6 and 7, affecting toll gates at more than 100 locations in Tokyo, Aichi and six other prefectures.



The company opened the gates to allow vehicles to pass through, calling on drivers to make payments at a later date.



At a news conference on Friday, company President and CEO Nawata Tadashi said given the seriousness of the incident, the firm will no longer demand payment from drivers. He said drivers who later offered to pay will not be charged.



Meanwhile, the firm says about 450,000 drivers have made, or are making, payments. They include drivers who paid by cash or credit card directly to operators at the toll gates. The firm says they will refund the tolls.



Nawata apologized and said the decision to refund drivers was made in consideration of fairness among the users of the toll gates.