Skip to main content

Kapsch flows free in France

New toll system on A79 set to process 15,000 vehicles per day along 88km stretch
By Adam Hill December 2, 2022 Read time: 2 mins
Kapsch will provide free-flow gantries for several French highways (© Prillfoto | Dreamstime.com)

Kapsch TrafficCom has delivered a barrier-free tolling system in France.

Kapsch says drivers no longer have to slow down or stop for tolling on the new A79 motorway in the centre of the country, thanks to the multi-lane free-flow system.

The system is set to process between 10,000 to 15,000 vehicles per day along its 88km stretch.

“The A79 is the first free-flow highway in the country and thus a major step towards multi-lane free-flow implementation and migration on the French highway network,” comments Quentin Houet, area sales manager at Kapsch TrafficCom.

The company says this means not only optimised travel time and less fuel use for motorists but also fewer emissions, as congested traffic is one of the main sources of traffic-related pollution.

In September, Kapsch was awarded another contract for free-flow gantries including hardware supply and related software by French highway concessionaire SAPN.

It will be installed along 250km of the A13 and A14 highways, a heavily-frequented highway route which runs between capital city Paris and the city of Caen in Normandy, and Kapsch says it will save 30,000 tons of CO2 per year.

The gantries are able to detect, identify and classify vehicles and calculate the corresponding toll fee automatically.

“This project is a major stepping stone in the migration from traditional plaza tolling towards free flow systems for a cleaner mobility and a seamless driving experience for the people using the A13 and A14 highways,” says Houet.

The first parts of the new system are expected to become operational in the second half of 2023 to allow a free flow go-live in the course of 2024.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Will mobile apps kick-start mobility pricing?
    January 5, 2016
    Thomas Hallauer from Ptolemus believes trials of connected road charging services will show the pay per mile concept will go much further than previously thought. Drivers are progressively becoming directly connected to the transport infrastructure and while the methods are changing, the innovation is really in the models rather than the technology.
  • Is fare-free transit taking us for a ride?
    August 11, 2022
    More cities around the world are trialling fare-free public transit schemes. Do they work and are they sustainable? Andrew Stone puts absolutely no money on his travelcard and jumps on board
  • New Mersey crossing ends Halton’s congestion misery
    December 5, 2017
    Plagued by intolerable congestion but denied government funding for its solution, tiny Halton Borough Council relentlessly pursued its vision and achieved what many believed impossible. Halton may be a small local authority in north west England, but it had a big traffic problem. However, as the road, or more particularly the bridge, involved was not deemed a strategic route, central government would not commission or even fund a solution - a problem that many other local authorities will recognise.
  • Q-Free awarded free flow toll extension in Portugal
    August 10, 2015
    Portuguese motorways operator Ascendi has awarded Q-Free a US$19 million contract for the renewal and extension of service and maintenance of several of the Ascendi multi-lane free flow toll (MLFF) concessions for a further six years. Ascendi is said to be the largest European private operator, providing automatic vehicle classification of four vehicle classes including HGVs and light passenger vehicles. The company has 128 collection points installed and processes around one million transactions per da