Open road tolling

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The ORT lanes at the West 163rd Street toll plaza, going northbound on the Tri-State Tollway near the Chicago suburb of Hazel Crest 163rd Street Open Road Tolling Lane.jpg
The ORT lanes at the West 163rd Street toll plaza, going northbound on the Tri-State Tollway near the Chicago suburb of Hazel Crest
Electronic Toll Collection Toll gate in Taiwan, which allows the motorist to pay their toll without stopping or slowing down ElectronicTollCollection69p8K20200808.jpg
Electronic Toll Collection Toll gate in Taiwan, which allows the motorist to pay their toll without stopping or slowing down

Open road tolling (ORT), also called all-electronic tolling, cashless tolling, or free-flow tolling, is the collection of tolls on toll roads without the use of toll booths. An electronic toll collection system is usually used instead. The major advantage to ORT is that users are able to drive through the toll plaza at highway speeds without having to slow down to pay the toll. In some installations, ORT may also reduce congestion at the plazas by allowing more vehicles per hour/per lane.

Contents

The disadvantage to ORT is that it relies on the honor system to the extent that without the presence of toll booths there is typically no physical means of preventing drivers who have no intention of paying the toll from accessing the road. Toll operators refer to such toll evasion as "leakage." To deter such behavior, toll operators can employ tools such as high-definition cameras to identify violators, and leakage can be offset in part or whole by fees and fines collected against offenders. However, in many cases such enforcement is relatively limited (for example, targeting only commercial vehicles and other such flagrant and/or repeat offenders). Some toll operators prefer to simply write off leakage as an expense, especially if the costs associated with collection efforts are expected to exceed the additional tolls, fees and/or fines that will likely be collected, or alternatively allow vehicles that are privately operated and/or below a specified size and/or weight to access the toll road free of charge.[ citation needed ]

History

Many ETC systems use transponders like this one to electronically debit the accounts of registered cars without their stopping. FasTrak transponder.jpg
Many ETC systems use transponders like this one to electronically debit the accounts of registered cars without their stopping.

In 1959, Nobel Economics Prize winner William Vickrey was the first to propose a system of electronic tolling for the Washington metropolitan area. He proposed that each car would be equipped with a transponder. The transponder's personalized signal would be picked up when the car passed through an intersection and then relayed to a central computer which would calculate the charge according to the intersection and the time of day and add it to the car's bill. [1]

Norway has been the world's pioneer in the widespread implementation of this technology. ETC was first introduced in Bergen, in 1986, operating together with traditional tollbooths. [2] The first major deployment of an RFID electronic toll collection system in the United States was the TollTag system used on the Dallas North Tollway, implemented in 1989 by Amtech. [3] The first fully automated toll highway in the world, Ontario Highway 407, opened in Canada on June 7, 1997. [4] The highway managed to achieve this automation through the use of both RFID technology and automatic number-plate recognition. [5]

In September 1998, Singapore became the first city in the world to implement an electronic road toll collection system for purposes of congestion pricing. [6] Today there are many roads around the world using electronic toll collection technologies, and ORT has opened the feasibility to implement congestion pricing policies in urban areas.

Collection methods

Highway 407 overhead cameras used to capture rear license plates in Ontario, Canada Electronic Toll Equipment in Ontario.jpg
Highway 407 overhead cameras used to capture rear license plates in Ontario, Canada
Tolls in the UAE Salik's Al Garhoud Bridge Toll Gate.jpg
Tolls in the UAE

Collection of tolls on open toll roads is usually conducted through either the use of transponders or automatic plate recognition, the vast majority of which utilizes an overhead gantry system above the road. While rarely used as the primary vehicle identification method, automatic number plate recognition is used on a number of different highway systems. Both methods aims to eliminate the delay on toll roads by collecting tolls electronically by electronically debiting the accounts of registered car owners without requiring them to stop.

Transponders

Transponders are a receiver-transmitter that will generate a reply signal upon proper electronic interrogation. Transponders are an adaptation of military identification friend or foe technology. Most current systems rely on radio-frequency identification, where an antenna at the toll gate communicates with a transponder on the vehicle via dedicated short-range communications (DSRC). Some early systems used barcodes affixed to each vehicle, to be read optically at the toll booth. Optical systems proved to have poor reading reliability, especially when faced with inclement weather and dirty vehicles.

Automatic number plate recognition

Automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) or an automatic license plate reader (ALPR) is a system that uses optical character recognition on images to read the license plates on vehicles. [7] While the technology is most commonly used by law enforcement for cataloging vehicle movements and traffic enforcement, [8] ANPR has also been used as a method of electronic toll collection. [9] ANPR can be used in conjunction with transponder systems. If a transponder is not detected on a vehicle, a system of cameras located at each junction logs the vehicle's unique identity and an invoice is mailed. [10] The use of ANPR reduces fraud related to cash transactions [11] or non-payment, [10] [ better source needed ][ non-primary source needed ] makes charging effective,[ clarification needed ] and reduces the amount of required manpower to enforce the toll road,[ citation needed ] but requires expensive computer software. [12]

However, ANPR usage raises questions over privacy and data protection. ANPR allows police to automatically compile vast databases of innocent road users' movements, thus invading their privacy. [13] Another concern is that the collected data can be abused by employees or stolen by computer hackers. This has led the police of Scotland to delete their collection of ANPR records in 2016. [12] As ANPR is a new technology, its use is often not tightly regulated; [13] it is unclear whether ANPR in Scotland complied with the UK data retention laws. [12]

Highways using system

Australia

Canada

France

Ireland

New Zealand

All three tolled sections of New Zealand highways use ANPR. Tolls can be paid at selected gas stations, online, or by setting up an account. [16]

Poland

Singapore

South Africa

Taiwan

United Kingdom

United States

The following is a list of some of the bridges and highways in the United States that use open road tolling:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toll road</span> Roadway for which a fee (or toll) is assessed for passage

A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and maintenance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlantic City Expressway</span> Highway in New Jersey

The Atlantic City Expressway, officially numbered, but unsigned, as Route 446 and abbreviated A.C. Expressway, ACE, or ACX, and known locally as the Expressway, is a 44.1-mile (70.97 km) controlled-access toll road in the U.S. state of New Jersey, managed and operated by the South Jersey Transportation Authority. It serves as an extension of the freeway part of Route 42 from Turnersville southeast to Atlantic City. The Atlantic City Expressway is signed as east–west, though the mileage and exits decrease as if one is travelling north–south. It connects Philadelphia and the surrounding Philadelphia metro area with Atlantic City and other Jersey Shore resorts, and also serves other South Jersey communities, including Hammonton and Mays Landing. The expressway intersects many major roads, including Route 73 in Winslow Township, Route 54 in Hammonton, Route 50 in Hamilton Township, the Garden State Parkway in Egg Harbor Township, US 9 in Pleasantville, and the Atlantic City–Brigantine Connector near the eastern terminus in Atlantic City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electronic toll collection</span> Wireless system to automatically collect the usage fee or toll charged to vehicles

Electronic toll collection (ETC) is a wireless system to automatically collect the usage fee or toll charged to vehicles using toll roads, HOV lanes, toll bridges, and toll tunnels. It is a faster alternative which is replacing toll booths, where vehicles must stop and the driver manually pays the toll with cash or a card. In most systems, vehicles using the system are equipped with an automated radio transponder device. When the vehicle passes a roadside toll reader device, a radio signal from the reader triggers the transponder, which transmits back an identifying number which registers the vehicle's use of the road, and an electronic payment system charges the user the toll.

E-ZPass is an electronic toll collection system used on toll roads, toll bridges, and toll tunnels in the Eastern, Midwestern, and Southern United States. The E-ZPass Interagency Group (IAG) consists of member agencies in several states, which use the same technology and allow travelers to use the same transponder on toll roads throughout the network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FasTrak</span> Electronic toll collection system in California

FasTrak is the electronic toll collection (ETC) system used in the state of California in the United States. The system is used statewide on all of the toll roads, toll bridges, and high-occupancy toll lanes along the California Freeway and Expressway System.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York State Thruway</span> System of controlled-access highways within the U.S. state of New York

The New York State Thruway is a system of controlled-access toll roads spanning 569.83 miles (917.05 km) within the U.S. state of New York. It is operated by the New York State Thruway Authority (NYSTA), a New York State public-benefit corporation. The 496.00-mile (798.23 km) mainline is a freeway that extends from the New York City line at Yonkers to the Pennsylvania state line at Ripley by way of I-87 and I-90 through Albany, Syracuse, and Buffalo. According to the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association, the Thruway is the fifth-busiest toll road in the United States. The toll road is also a major route for long distance travelers linking the cities of Toronto, Buffalo, and Montreal with Boston and New York City.

Florida's Turnpike, designated as unsigned State Road 91, is a controlled-access toll road in the U.S. state of Florida, maintained by Florida's Turnpike Enterprise (FTE). Spanning approximately 309 miles (497 km) along a northwest–southeast axis, the turnpike is in two sections. The SR 91 mainline runs roughly 265 miles (426 km), from its southern terminus at an interchange with Interstate 95 (I-95) in Miami Gardens to an interchange with I-75 in Wildwood at its northern terminus. The Homestead Extension of Florida's Turnpike continues from the southern end of the mainline for another 48 miles (77 km) to US Highway 1 in Florida City. The slogan for the road is "The Less Stressway". The mainline opened in stages between 1957 and 1964, while the extension was completed in 1974. The turnpike runs through Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach, where it parallels I-95, and through Orlando, where it crosses I-4.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SunPass</span> Electronic toll collection system in Florida, United States

SunPass is an electronic toll collection system within the state of Florida, United States. It was created in 1999 by the Florida Department of Transportation's (FDOT's) Office of Toll Operations, operating now as a division of Florida's Turnpike Enterprise (FTE). The system utilizes windshield-mounted RFID transponders manufactured by TransCore and lane equipment designed by companies including TransCore, SAIC, and Raytheon.

State Road 589 (SR 589), also known as the Veterans Expressway and Suncoast Parkway, is a controlled-access toll road near the Florida Gulf Coast. Maintained and operated by Florida's Turnpike Enterprise, this 68-mile (109 km) transportation corridor extends from State Road 60 in Tampa, north to State Road 44 near Lecanto. The Veterans Expressway was built to accommodate the increasing commuter traffic in the Tampa-St. Petersburg metropolitan area, with the Suncoast Parkway opening in 2001, extending from near the northern terminus of the Veterans Expressway to U.S. Route 98, with a possible northern extension to U.S. Route 19/U.S. Route 98 in Crystal River in Citrus County in the planning and development stages. As of February 28, 2022, Phase I of the extension is now open between US 98 and Florida State Road 44. Phase II, which would further extend the highway to County Road 486, is undergoing the design phase.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee Roy Selmon Expressway</span> Highway in Florida

State Road 618, also known as the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway, and formerly known as the Crosstown Expressway, is a 14.168-mile (22.801 km) controlled-access toll road in Hillsborough County, Florida. It connects the South Tampa neighborhood near MacDill Air Force Base with Downtown Tampa and the bedroom community of Brandon. The expressway was built in stages, opening between 1976 and 1987. An approximately 1.9-mile extension to the thoroughfare's western terminus opened to traffic on Monday, April 19, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dolphin East–West Expressway</span> Highway in Florida

The Dolphin East–West Expressway is a 15.4-mile (24.8 km) freeway, with the westernmost 14 miles (23 km) as an all-electronic tollway signed as State Road 836, and the easternmost 1.292 miles (2.079 km) between Interstate 95 (I-95) and SR A1A cosigned as Interstate 395 (I-395).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Florida State Road 869</span> Highway in Florida

Florida State Road 869 (SR 869) is a 24-mile-long (39 km) state road located in western and northern Broward County, acting as a de facto bypass of Fort Lauderdale as well as the northern coastal and southern parts of the county extending north from a junction of I-75 (SR 93), I-595 (SR 862) in Sunrise to Coral Springs where it heads eastward towards Florida's Turnpike and intersecting I-95 before terminating at Southwest 10th Avenue in Deerfield Beach. The 21.242-mile (34.186 km) section west of the Turnpike is known as the Sawgrass Expressway, a six-lane, controlled-access toll road; the 2.745-mile (4.418 km) section east of the Turnpike is a boulevard known as Southwest 10th Street. The expressway opened in 1986 and was added to Florida's Turnpike Enterprise in 1990. The at-grade section east of the Turnpike is maintained by FDOT.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Route 576</span> Toll highway in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Route 576 (PA Turnpike 576), also known as the Southern Beltway, is a controlled-access toll road in the southern and western suburbs of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. It is envisioned to serve as a southern beltway around the Greater Pittsburgh area between Pittsburgh International Airport and the historic Steel Valley of the Monongahela River.

The Homestead Extension of Florida's Turnpike (HEFT), designated as unsigned State Road 821 (SR 821), is the southern extension of Florida's Turnpike, a controlled-access toll road in the U.S. state of Florida maintained by Florida's Turnpike Enterprise (FTE). Spanning approximately 48 miles (77 km) along a north–south axis, it supplements the 265-mile (426 km) mainline to form the complete 309-mile (497 km) turnpike. The extension begins at its southern terminus at U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Florida City, and transitions into the SR 91 mainline in Miramar at its northern end. Despite their designations as different state roads, the mainline and the extension are continuous in their exit numbering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Video tolling</span> Form of electronic toll collection

Video tolling is a form of electronic toll collection that uses video or still images of a vehicle's license plate to identify a vehicle liable to pay a road toll. The system dispenses with collection of road tolls using road-side cash or payment card methods, and may be used in conjunction with "all electronic" open road tolling, to permit drivers without an RFID device to use the toll road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ticket system</span> Method of collecting tolls on highways

A ticket system, also known as a closed toll collection system, is a system used on some toll roads in which a user pays a toll rate based on the distance traveled from their originating entrance to their destination exit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barrier toll system</span> Method of collecting tolls on highways

A barrier toll system is a method of collecting tolls on highways using toll barriers at regularly spaced intervals on the toll road's mainline. Motorists are typically charged a flat-rate toll, unlike toll roads with a ticket system where the toll rate is determined by the distance traveled or number of exits passed. Some highways use coin-drop machines on toll plazas. For toll roads whose ramps have no toll plazas, it is possible to exit the toll road before the mainline toll plaza, use local streets to bypass it, then re-enter the highway via an interchange on the other side of the toll plaza. Thus it is possible to drive on some barrier toll roads while paying less or not paying at all; this is the basis of the "open" descriptor.

Oklahoma has an extensive turnpike system, maintained by the state government through the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority. All of Oklahoma's turnpikes are controlled-access highways. The majority have at least four lanes, though the Chickasaw Turnpike is two lanes.

References

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