Charging, Tolling & RUC

Andrew Bardin Williams considers the effect of the ‘Name and Shame’ strategy adopted in Texas to encourage serial toll violators to pay up. It’s a tough time to be a scofflaw in the Lone Star State. Habitual toll violators - some with tens of thousands of unpaid tolls and fees - are being publically shamed into squaring their accounts with US toll agencies. In November 2013 the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) starting publishing a list of the state’s most egregious toll violators on its website.

Q-Free has increased its stake in US traffic controller supplier, Intelight, with a five year option program which will give shareholders the option to sell shares at closing in 2015 and in five subsequent years valid from 2016. The deal will give Q-Free the opportunity to add some 15 per cent of Intelight shares to its current 10.2 per cent shareholding each year. At end of the five year period, Q-Free has the option to acquire the rest of the shares. The first transaction will be closed during the second

The Indiana Finance Authority (IFA) and Ohio River Bridges Joint Board have again selected Kapsch TraffiCom to manage and maintain an all-electronic toll-collection system for the Louisville-Southern Indiana Ohio River Bridges Project. Kapsch TrafficCom was selected from among three bidders who participated in the proposal process. A joint evaluation committee, made up of officials from both Indiana and Kentucky, scored the proposals based on the best value. Kapsch TrafficCom's proposal estimate was US$41.5

Australian fund manager IFM Investors, on behalf of IFM Global Infrastructure Fund, has paid US$5.7 billion for the bankrupt Indiana Toll Road Concession, a 253-kilometre highway that runs from the border of Indiana and Ohio towards Chicago, giving it exclusive rights to operate and maintain the road for the next 66 years. The road, previously jointly owned by Macquarie and Spanish infrastructure group Ferrovial, went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September due to poor traffic volumes and was put up for sal

Sanef ITS and connected car company Intelligent Mechatronic Systems (IMS) have been awarded a road usage charge contract by the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT). Debuting on Oregon's roadways in July 2015, this voluntary distance-based road usage charging program is said to be North America's first implementation of a mileage-based charging solution. Diminishing fuel tax returns led Oregon decision-makers to look for a fair, reliable source of revenue to fund transportation projects for the state.

Sanef ITS and connected car company Intelligent Mechatronic Systems (IMS) have been awarded a road usage charge contract by the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT). Debuting on Oregon's roadways in July 2015, this voluntary distance-based road usage charging program is said to be North America's first implementation of a mileage-based charging solution. Diminishing fuel tax returns led Oregon decision-makers to look for a fair, reliable source of revenue to fund transportation projects for the state.

TransCore has been awarded a multi-year, US$205 million contract by Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) to deliver accurate financial accounting, comprehensive transaction processes and customer service operations for its E-ZPass Service Centers. TransCore will implement its Integrity system to process more than 160 million MassDOT transactions each year. As the State moves to a cashless tolling solution, Integrity offers an E-ZPass interoperability module to manage more than 1.9 million lo

The Texas Transportation Commission has awarded a contract to the Blueridge Transportation Group for the the planning, construction, financing, operation and maintenance of an express toll road and additional infrastructures for the SH 288 toll lanes project in Harris County in Texas. The consortium includes Israel-based Shikun & Binui Holdings, together with an infrastructure contractor and a financial investor. The ten mile stretch of road will connect Harris County to Houston. The project includes constr

Kapsch TrafficCom experienced stable business development in the first three quarters of 2014/2015 with existing installation and operation projects. The Group was also able to obtain a number of new orders in Australia during the third quarter, although new major orders, upon which the innovation and growth plans are based, remained elusive due to the lack of corresponding invitations to tender. Revenue of the Group during the first three quarters of the 2014/15 fiscal year was US$283.5 million, slightly b

Q-Free has been awarded five new contracts by the Norwegian Public Roads Administration for its AutoPass roadside tolling systems. The contracts, at an estimated value of US$6.8 million, are for projects located in Bodø, Harstad, Svinesund, Helgeland and Tresfjord in Norway. The delivery comprises installation of charging points, including gantries and roadside equipment, together with service and maintenance after the completion of the installation. The contract also includes option for extension of the se