Charging, Tolling & RUC

Matrox Graphics has won the NewBay Best of Show Award for its enterprise encoder appliance at the 2018 NAB Show. Sound & Video Contractor chose the platform for its ability to simultaneously capture, stream and record up to 4K input from a single appliance. Called Matrox Maevex 6150 Quad 4K Enterprise Encoder Appliance, the solution aims to feed on-premises and cloud-based servers to reach internet viewers and push streams over local area networks for local audiences. The innovation can also record to

A spat has broken out between two major US transportation organisations over how best to pay for road use: the ATA says tolls are ‘fake funding’ while IBTTA has scorned ‘scare tactics and falsehoods’… Much has been made of the state of US roads: everyone agrees that funding is needed – but who should pay? And how? Chris Spear, president and CEO of American Trucking Associationsm(ATA), believes finance is facing a cliff edge: the Highway Trust Fund (HTF), historically the primary source of federal revenue

Tulsa-based OmniAir Consortium has certified two devices for tolling interoperability from Star Systems International (SSI). The Vektra Windshield Sticker Tag and Solana Passive Transponder can be mounted on either a vehicle’s windscreen or headlamp. SSI supplies passive tolling devices across the world and to members of the 6C Toll Operators Coalition as well as other tolling operators within the US. Stephen Lockhart, CTO for SSI, said: “Star Systems International is committed to bringing the best

Tolling specialist Q-Free will integrate a traffic signal module into the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s (PennDoT’s) advanced traffic management system (ATMS) Open TMS. Q-Free says the upgrade will allow the PennDoT to add 10,000 intersections to its system to help manage the traffic network in real time. Under the agreement, the traffic module will allow Q-Free subsidiary Intelight to integrate its Maxview ATMS with PennDoT’s system.

Telensa’s Planet system will replace around 600 street lights in Hong Kong’s Yuen Long Town area, to help provide a low-cost platform for smart city applications. The company was chosen by the highways department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSARG). Planet is an intelligent street lighting system that is said to pay for itself in reduced energy and maintenance costs as well as offering improved quality of service through automatic fault reporting. Engineering services group

Tolling specialist Q-Free is to provide cameras, sensors and services for vehicle and number plate recognition at various points on Norway’s borders from 2019. The two-year agreement with the Directorate of Norwegian Customs will also serve the Norwegian Public Roads Administration and Norwegian Police. Q-Free estimates the contract will be worth 40-60m NOK (€4.2-6.3m).

We pay for roads through our taxes: the poor pay proportionately more, and effectively subsidise the rich. It would be fairer to accept the ‘user pays’ principle, says Dr John Walker. Road pricing is already used worldwide to combat congestion and pollution, to compensate for falling revenues from fuel duty (‘gas tax’), to provide an alternative (and fairer) means of charging motorists than the 80-year old fuel tax and to improve the efficiency of and expand transport infrastructure. However, it could and s

Parsons will implement its tolling technology along a key toll road in California. It will work on the Orange County segment of the four-lane, 18-mile 91 Express Lanes to improve services along the corridor. The company was chosen by the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) to deliver technical and operational services, including specifications development for toll and ITS, tolling-related planning and construction activities.

Motorists travelling over San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge are set to pay an extra 25 cents per trip from 1 July. According to a report by Marin Independent Journal: “The onslaught of toll increases at the Golden Gate Bridge is not likely to subside as span authorities face looming budget deficits.” The bridge board will need to decide if more toll hikes are needed in a discussion scheduled for this autumn.

Kapsch TrafficCom’s Customer Service System (CSS) will be used by the Georgia State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA) to process electronic toll and parking transactions. The modular product is also intended to provide an interoperability platform for future multi-modal service invoicing. The back-office solution will be deployed with the intention of allowing SRTA to offer drivers a seamless experience by processing transactions for all of its toll facilities as well as support partner facilities within