Skip to main content

3M shows faith in tolling

3M’s decision to acquire the business of Federal Signal Technologies Group (FSTech) from Federal Signal Corporation for a purchase price of US$110 million in cash provides an insight into the company’s view of the tolling industry’s future health. 3M says the fast-growing US$3 billion electronic tolling industry is projected to grow at a rate greater than 12 per cent per year as government agencies increasingly rely on tolling to fund roadway infrastructure, construction and maintenance. The company says FS
August 13, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
4080 3M’s decision to acquire the business of 811 Federal Signal Technologies Group (FSTech) from 38 Federal Signal Corporation for a purchase price of US$110 million in cash provides an insight into the company’s view of the tolling industry’s future health.

3M says the fast-growing US$3 billion electronic tolling industry is projected to grow at a rate greater than 12 per cent per year as government agencies increasingly rely on tolling to fund roadway infrastructure, construction and maintenance.

The company says FSTech’s solutions for electronic tolling, vehicle identification and classification, toll management software, licence plate recognition, and parking lot fare collection systems, combined with 3M’s traffic management solutions, will advance the tolling and parking industry, enabling seamless fare collection wherever motorists drive.

“Electronic tolling and parking are key adjacencies to 3M’s offering for motor vehicle systems and services,” said John Houle, vice president and general manager, 3M Traffic Safety Systems Division. “FSTech will complement 3M’s offerings for the Department of Transportation, the Department of Motor Vehicles, toll authorities, and law enforcement agencies, and expand on our core traffic products for motor vehicles and roadways, and licence plate validation materials.”

FSTech’s technologies come from its five business units: 36 Idris - vehicle detection and classification solution; PIPS - fixed and mobile automatic license plate reading hardware and software; 6359 Federal APD - parking management and fare collection solutions; 495 Sirit - active and passive RFID transponders and readers; and 2073 VESystems - toll account management and violation processing software and services.

Related Content

  • March 30, 2017
    ISO standard aids interoperability and data security
    Star Systems International’s Stephen Lockhart, explains how ISO 18000-6C can boost both interoperability and data security in RFID tolling applications. As more states, municipalities and agencies deploy electronic tolling solutions to generate funds and reduce congestion at tollbooths, there have been increased calls for standardisation in the industry.
  • May 21, 2012
    Federal signals open
    Federal Signal Technologies just completed an open testing period with the North Carolina Turnpike Authority (NCTA), proving its RFID readers and Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR) cameras are able to read multiple protocols at high speeds.
  • September 11, 2012
    Tolling interoperability certification awards issued
    OmniAir Certification Services (OCS) has granted 3M the first OmniAir certified awards for products tested in its 6C-for-Tolling Certification Program, to be presented at 80th IBTTA Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida on 10 September 2012. Based on the ISO/IEC 18000-6 (Type C) RFID protocol, the 6C certification program is designed to ensure tolling tag and reader interoperability (IOP) across equipment vendors and toll facilities that choose to deploy equipment certified as compliant to the 6C requirements
  • January 18, 2012
    Cellular communications drive the way forward for tolling
    For more than 20 years prior to joining the ITS industry, Mike Payne of Idris, part of Federal Signal Technologies, worked for Vodafone - the world's biggest mobile operator. Here, he considers how the road tolling sector can grow and learn from the cellular industry. The global cellphone has been one of the most successful collaborative technology projects in the last 30 years. Mobile phone technology developed throughout the 20th century with the first public service in the early 70s. This was followed by