Skip to main content

Tolling expected to be fastest growing application of ALPR, says report

According to global information company, the growing adoption of automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) technology is having an adverse impact on the vehicle entrance control industry, specifically the vehicle barrier and off-street parking systems markets, according to IHS. The presence of ALPR technology is increasing the most for toll ways and off-street parking garages, which is negatively impacting the growth of vehicle barriers, the research firm reports. In ALPR mature markets such as the Amer
February 12, 2014 Read time: 3 mins
According to global information company, the growing adoption of automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) technology is having an adverse impact on the vehicle entrance control industry, specifically the vehicle barrier and off-street parking systems markets, according to IHS.

The presence of ALPR technology is increasing the most for toll ways and off-street parking garages, which is negatively impacting the growth of vehicle barriers, the research firm reports. In ALPR mature markets such as the Americas where the adoption of the technology is prevalent, highway/toll barrier revenues are projected to decline by 16.1 per cent from 2013 to 2017.

ALPR systems work by using cameras with optical recognition capabilities to identify vehicles and grant access while minimising congestion. Less congestion allows systems to operate at a higher profitability thus increasing the system’s ROI in comparison to traditional barrier solutions.

The most popular use of ALPR systems is in tolling which allows cars to pass freely while penalising unpermitted vehicles through their license plate registration. IHS estimated the global tolling industry to be worth US$3 billion in 2013 and projects tolling to be the fastest growing ALPR application in the world. The growing trend of privatisation within the tolling sector, along with the lack of government highway financing in mature markets such as Western Europe and the United States, has increased the popularity of ALPR technology in order to optimise profitability.

A less developed trend is the use of ALPR technology in off-street parking systems. ALPR allows for ticketless off-street parking systems that can offer subscription or long-term parking options. These cameras can not only increase the effectiveness of parking revenue by reducing fraud and allowing for faster ticketless entry, but the cameras can also be integrated into 24-hour security systems which increases their value. IHS projects parking to be the third fastest growing application for ALPR from 2012 to 2017 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.4 per cent.

The main barrier for the ALPR technology is the price. The image quality of ALPR cameras is crucial for vehicle entrance control revenue systems because any motion blur could result in revenue loss. This requires investment in both ALPR hardware and software which can be costly. IHS predicts the highway/toll barrier market to be the most significantly impacted by the increasing adoption of ALPR technology in the vehicle entrance control market.

The impact on the off-street parking sector is currently minimal; however as more parking garages look to adopt ALPR this will ultimately result in less requirements for traditional parking hardware. This could be problematic for suppliers that do not invest in ALPR technology, says IHS.

Related Content

  • Fast-growing fleet management systems market show no sign of slowing
    July 18, 2016
    According to a new research report from M2M/IoT analyst firm Berg Insight, the number of active fleet management systems deployed in commercial vehicle fleets in North America was 5.8 million in Q4-2015. Growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.0 per cent, this number is expected to reach 12.7 million by 2020. In Latin America, the number of active fleet management systems is expected to increase from 2.3 million in Q4-2015, growing at a CAGR of 12.8 percent to reach 4.1 million in 2020. The
  • Electric vehicle infrastructure market set to grow
    June 10, 2016
    According to a new TechSci Research report, Global Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Market By Type, by Installed Location, by Region, Competition Forecast and Opportunities, 2011 - 2021, the global market for electric vehicle infrastructure is projected to grow at a CAGR of over 27 per cent during 2016-2021, on account of favourable government policies that promote adoption of electric vehicles and growing concerns over harmful effects of air pollution. Additionally, grid integration of electric vehicles
  • WiM market to reach $1.8bn by 2027: report
    February 2, 2023
    Research and Markets predicts CAGR of 10% in sector over the next five years
  • Smart transportation market worth US$138.76 billion by 2020
    July 24, 2015
    According to a new market research report, Smart Transportation Market by Solutions (Ticketing Management, Parking Management, Traffic Management, Smart Signalling, Multimodal Information Systems, Passenger Information Systems, Cloud Services, Business Services) - Global Forecast to 2020, published by MarketsandMarkets, the smart transportation market is set to grow from US$46.72 billion in 2015 to US$138.76 billion by 2020, growing at a CAGR of 24.3 per cent from 2015 to 2020.