It is proposed to extend the scheme to other parts of the country also. The Electronic Toll Collection scheme shall be implemented on all India basis.

It is also proposed to build toll roads on Public Private Partnership (PPP) model in various parts of the country. The specification for Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) transceivers, RFID Tag & Data Exchange format between Toll Plaza server and the Central Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) System for implementation of national wide interoperable ETC system based on RFID technology on National Highways has been finalized. RFID will be based on EPC Gen-2, ISO 18000-6C standards for Electronic Toll Collection on National Highways in India.

This information was given by the Minister of State of Road Transport and Highways, Shri Jitin Prasada in a written reply in Lok Sabha today

Source: http://pib.nic.in

“The entire system is now operational,” enthused Michael Gschnitzer, Kapsch TrafficCom’s sales director. “Until today we had successfully registered more than 300,000 vehicles – in the upcoming days we expect to distribute around 25,000 onboard units daily. As a result of the big interest of the road users, we extended the capacity and working hours on most of the points of sale. The mobile enforcement units already successfully control whether vehicles above 3.5 tons are properly equipped with OBUs. The system was implemented in record time. For the whole implementation, we had not more than eight months. There is still enough to do for us, but the system could now successfully go into operation.”

Workshop on Nationwide Electronic Toll Collection

• Mr. C P Joshi , Honrable Minister Road Transport and Highways
• Mr.  Nandan Nilkani , Chairman , UIDAI
• Mr. R S GUJRAL , Chairman NHAI
• Mr. Ravi Palekar , GM (Electronics) , NHAI – Addressing the gathering
• Mr. Sachin Bhatia, CEO, Metro Infrasys

Workshop on Nationwide Electronic Toll Collection held at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. With an objective of paving way for a unified Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) technology for National Highways in India, the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways constituted a Committee under the chairmanship of Shri Nandan Nilekani Chairman of UIDAI with a mandate to examine all technologies available for Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) and recommend the most suitable one for implementation throughout India. The other members of the Committee are Prof. Pankaj Jalote, Director, IIIT-Delhi ; Dr. Kolin Paul, Asst. Professor, IIT-Delhi ; Shri A.V. Sinha, DG (Road Development) & Special Secretary, MoRT&H and Shri. V.L. Patankar, Member (Technical), NHAI (Member Secretary).

The Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways Dr. C.P. Joshi has said that we should chalk out a plan to increase the percentage of national highways from present 2.2 % to 5 % in the next 10 years. Delivering inaugural address at the Consultation Workshop with the Technology Providers and Concessionaires in respect of Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) here today, he said that keeping in view the various types of highways there should be a hybrid pattern of toll collection. The Workshop was jointly organized by Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, National Highways Authority of India & National Informatics Centre. The Chairman of UIDAI Shri Nandan Nilkeni & Minister of State for RT&H Shri Tusharbhai A. Chaudhary also addressed the workshop. Shri R.S. Gujral, Secretary Ministry of Road Transport & Highways and Dr. V.K. Gairola, D.G (NIC) were present.

Mr. Sachin Bhatia CEO Metro Infrasys expressing the support from Industry Fraternity

Based on the recommendations of the committee headed by Mr. Nandan Nilekani to use RFID technology for ETC, the Apex Committee, responsible for ETC implementation planning, is in the process of prescribing certain standards which should be complied with all over the country to ensure interoperability. The primary purpose of this workshop was to take feedback from the key stakeholders, comprising concessionaires and ETC technology service providers. Security, cost effectiveness, convenience and scalability have been the main criteria based on which the detailing has been done.

Based on the feedback, the specifications and data detailing will be finalized for open market release. The plan is that the authorized manufacturers will be producing Transceivers and Tags based on these standards, the concessionaires will be procuring these Transceivers and in turn, the technology service providers will be integrating the entire ETC system at the toll plaza. Although details on other aspects like clearing house are being worked out simultaneously, majority of the decisions will depend upon these standards only.

Followings are the Tolling Companies, RFID Manufacturer and concessionaire took part in the workshop:

• Kapsch Metro
• Egis Infra
• L&T Infra
• GMR
• HCC Infrastructure
• JICA
• IRDSA
• DSC
• EFKON India
• Siemens
• IAITO Infotech Pvt. Ltd.
• ESSEN, Mumbai
• ATT System, Banglore
• Mitsubishi
• IBI Group
• Neology
• Steria
• Tag Factory

Brief of discussion over finalization of technology between committee and Industry Peoples:

• Dr. B.K. Gairola, Director General, NIC  – extreme left
• Dr. Y.K. Sharma, DDG, NIC - middle position
• Dr. Rajat Moona, Director General of CDAC, IIT Kanpur
• Dr. Y.K. Sharma, DDG, NIC - extreme Right

Mr. Venkat from GMR expressed change from IP 66 to IP 65 for the readers as IP 65 is also good enough and IP 66 will increase the cost for the readers without any additional value.

Mr. Hari from Efkon
He raised an issue over the  relative humidity of 100% for Transceiver antenna.

Committee Conclusion :
Committee agreed for the IP 65 standard and 95% relative humidity as it comply against all possible environmental threat at toll scenario.

Mr. Anand Shenoy from IAITO Infotech Pvt. Ltd.
Raised his voice over minimum requirement of reading of 10 Tags per second with 240 bits of EPC memory and 64 bits of Tag Id.

Committee Conclusion: committee agreed onto change it to 2 Tags per second with above said minimum requirement. On the other query raised by Mr. Shenoy that the data retention period must be 3-4 year for the tag memory instead of 10 years as their is no UV protection asked for the tag and without any special material with the effect of UV rays its hard to maintain the data in tag for 10 years, The committee replied as they will keep it under consideration and if required they will bring it in next phase.

On the query raised by Team from Metro Infrasys- Mr. Nitin Thakur and Mr. Harimohan for the option of having color coded  Tags for different class of vehicles, as it will help in operation at toll plazas. The Committee said that it is difficult to see the color in the moving car in the sun. However committee will discuss it in next phase.

Mr. Vipul  Sharma(Left), Mr. Mayank Manish(Right)
The long discussed topic was the polarization standard for the antenna, Panel has asked for circular polarization pattern for the antenna but Mr. Vipul Sharma and Mayank Manish from one of the leading manufacturer of RFID Equipment Neology reasoned to have it linearly polarized due to its long range and less interference phenomenon, also linearly polarized antennas can work at higher speed , committee keep this for discussion and will revert again.

Mr. Manoj Agarwal and Mr. Manish from Delhi Gurgaon Expressway strongly supported the idea of a law for putting a penalty on cash vehicles coming to Tag lane .

For the standard for the communication between plaza server and CCH server, there will be addition of Plaza id into the prescribed format by the committee. Plaza level fare plan and policy will be governed by the plaza itself while the global discount will be governed by the CCH server and will be updated in all the plaza server by CCH server itself. Committee also agreed to look into the various aspects of fare plans at different plazas.

Highlights of the Workshop:

ETC critical components:
Tag Distribution Channel & Inventory Management

• On-line channels by user
• Authorized service centers of vehicles (Service centre need to install the SPV client software and antenna connection), since centre must have authorized people to affix tags.
• RTO(Operation is similar to above)
• Vehicle dealer network(Operation is similar to above)
• Authorized point of sale installation(POS can be insurance companies, PUC centers, Petrol Pumps etc; Operation is similar to above)

Inventory Management of Tags:
SPV will keep track of allocated EPC Ids, Tag Ids etc. It will perform a demand forecast Tags and keep the tags available for distribution through distribution channel.

Handling Special Cases

• Valid ETC enabled vehicle was ejected due to non-read of Tag – Premium cash lane should verify it with the ETC database.
• Clone Tag – If customer complains/suspects that his/her Tag is cloned, Tag re-initiation is to be done for same Tag. Old Tag value is marked for special handling.
• Change in registration number of vehicle – Vehicle should approach distribution channel network and get a new tag. Old tag is to be destroyed physically and listed for special handling.
• De-registration of vehicle (due to destruction/ end of life/ Export etc.)-Tag is to be destroyed physically and listed for special handling.

Listing for Special Attention
Vehicle is listed for special attention following conditions:

• Insufficient balance as determined by clearing house
• Credit card co. declined the payment
• On Police look-out
• Suspected cloned Tag
• Tag with invalid Vehicle Registration no. (e.g. when Registration no. is changed)
• When toll plaza operator notices Tag carrying details different from vehicle itself (e.g. the vehicle Registration no. and/ or Vehicle class)

Videos

Conclusions drawn at the end of the seminar:

Documents Attached:

• Agenda Workshop
• Apex Committee for ETC Implementations – GOI, Draft Specifications Document
• ETC Report on RFID – July 2010

This story is covered by Mr. Sachin Bhatia.

Chief Editor, IndianTollways
CEO, Metro Infrasys
Email: sachin@metroinfrasys.com

Vienna, November 5, 2010. Kapsch TrafficCom AG (ISIN AT000KAPSCH9), listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange in the prime market segment, has agreed to acquire through subsidiaries the businesses of MARK IV IVHS, part of MARK IV, LLC (U.S.), in the United States, in Canada and in Mexico for a purchase price of USD 70 million (approximately EUR 50 million), subject to certain closing conditions and subject to certain potential price adjustments based on working capital included with the business. The transaction is structured as a stock purchase of the holding companies which own the Mark IV IVHS business, and closing is targeted for 30 November 2010.

MARK IV IVHS is a designer and manufacturer of dedicated short-range communication (DSRC) devices that are widely used by highway, toll, turnpike, tunnel, and bridge authorities to enable intelligent transportation systems (ITS) such as electronic toll collection (ETC) and automated weigh station bypass. With more than 21.8 million transponders on-the-road and more than 3,700 lanes equipped, MARK IV
IVHS is the largest supplier of ETC equipment in North America. MARK IV IVHS has enabled many landmark ITS deployments, including: the world’s first non-stop, all-electronic toll road (Highway 407 ETR, Canada); interoperability between truck electronic preclearance systems and toll collection (PrePass); and, the E-ZPass® system of the 24 toll authorities in 14 states who comprise the E-ZPass® Group in the Northeastern United States. E-ZPass® is a regional ETC system that can be used throughout the Northeast and Midwest regions of the United States. MARK IV IVHS also recently announced a contract award in exico. With 142 employees, MARK IV IVHS generated in its last fiscal year 2009/2010, ended February 28, 2010, net sales of approximately USD 50 million (approximately EUR 36 million) at a clear positive free cash flow and at an EBITDA margin accretive to the EBITDA margin of Kapsch TrafficCom Group generated in its last fiscal year 2009/2010, ended March 31, 2010.

Kapsch TrafficCom is an international supplier of superior intelligent transportation systems (ITS). Its principle business is the development and supply of electronic toll collection (ETC) systems, in particular for the multi-lane free-flow (MLFF) of the traffic, and the technical and commercial operation of such systems. Kapsch TrafficCom also supplies traffic management systems, with a focus on road safety and traffic control, and electronic access systems and parking management. With approximately 240 references in 39 countries on all five continents, and with more than 19 million transponders (on-board units – OBUs) delivered and nearly 13,000 lanes equipped, Kapsch TrafficCom has positioned itself among the leading uppliers of ETC systems worldwide. Kapsch TrafficCom is headquartered in Vienna, Austria, and has ubsidiaries and representative offices in 25 countries. With currently almost 1,500 employees, Kapsch TrafficCom Group generated revenues of EUR 216 million (approximately USD 300 million) in its last fiscal year 2009/2010, ended March 31, 2010.

For more information, please contact:
Marcus Handl
Investor Relations
Kapsch TrafficCom AG
Phone: +43 (0) 50 811 1120
Am Europlatz 2, A-1120 Vienna, Austria
E-mail: ir.kapschtraffic@kapsch.net
www.kapschtraffic.com
www.kpasch.net

Toll booths on National Highways will adopt the passive RFID technology standard – ISO 18000 6C — for electronic toll collection (ETC) system, based on the recommendation of a committee set up for this purpose, headed by Mr Nandan Nilekani, Chairman, Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). The recommendations have been adopted by the Highways Ministry.

In the ETC system, vehicles will have tags on their windscreens – where amounts can be pre-loaded (just like prepaid SIM cards for phones) – and when the vehicles pass through NH toll lanes with tag readers, the toll amount would automatically get debited. This will pave the way for setting up of ETC system across the NH network.

EARLIER ATTEMPTS
Since last four years or so, attempts of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to adopt any technology standard for this project had been thwarted by companies which had competing technology of ETC. This standard was chosen because of many factors. For instance, for vehicle owners, the cost of adopting this technology will be much lower compared to other standards; it has been used in many countries in the last one decade. Also, there are multiple vendors such as Neology, Intermac, Motorola, Sirit, Alien and Invango, who operate in this space.

For the system to work, the user vehicles need to buy tags and have them attached to the windscreen; the toll booths require a tag reader; and a central toll clearing house has to be set up which will take care of all reconciliations between various road developers. For instance, between two points of travel, a commercial vehicle might cross five tolling booths – two of which are operated by the NHAI and three by three different private concessionaires. The clearing house operator will ensure that the amount debited from the vehicles’ on board unit (tag) at each of these toll plazas is credited into the concerned owner/operator of the highway stretch on a real time basis. As more vehicles adopt the ETC, the toll revenue leakage can be contained to a large extent.

COST
“There are about 147 toll booths on the NH network, out of which about 100-odd are operated by NHAI and remaining by private developers,” Mr V.L. Patankar, Member-Technical, NHAI, said. Each reader will cost about Rs 2 lakh. Each NH toll booth will have at least two lanes (one on each side) with tag readers. NHAI or the operating concessionaire is likely to bear the cost of setting up tag readers at its toll plazas though the Union Highway Minister, Mr Kamal Nath, said he expects the system to be “self-financing”. It is also not clear as to who will fund the clearing house operator. At present, two NH stretches have ETC options –Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway and Bangalore-Electronic City elevated highway.

THE WAY FORWARD

The committee has recommended that a system integrator for ETC design and implementation be there, and hiring of a consultant for the financial bidding and vendor selection. An authority has to be set up to operate central system. Also, the committee has said that a high penalty system should be worked out to handle violators – vehicles who try to pass through the plaza without enough funds.

The National Institute for Smart Government – an eGovernance Innovation Library in IIT Delhi – is likely to help the Road Transport Ministry in the initiative.

TIMELINE/OTHER APPLICATIONS

Mr Nath said the process of setting up the ETC systems should be initiated in 18 months. He added that he will talk to SIAM to ensure that vehicles are sold with pre-fitted tags. Mr Nilekani added that with ETC in place, the card can by used by various other operators such as parking owners, state highway concessionaires, etc., for payments. Mr Nilekani also said that a public portal should provide data on vehicle traffic on highways and toll plazas.

Download ETC Report

Source:
mamuni@thehindu.co.in
thehindu.co.in

ISO/TS 12813:2009, “Electronic fee collection – Compliance check communication for autonomous systems”, will help to ensure the optimal use of on-board equipment (OBE) interfacing with satellite positioning to collect the data required for charging for the use of roads in an autonomous mode, without relying on dedicated road-side infrastructure.

The standard defines the requirements for using dedicated short range communication (DSRC) between on-board equipment and an interrogator for the purpose of checking compliance of road use with a local toll regime. This will enable checking of non-national vehicles and thus enable cross border enforcement of non-compliant vehicles.

The scope of the Electronic Fee Collection (EFC) standards relates to EFC charging systems and information exchanges over the interfaces. The standards focus on the interface between the on-board and the roadside equipment, but also deal with the ‘Information data flows between operators’. The standards primarily cover EFC systems based on Dedicated Short-Range Communication (DSRC); Cellular Network / Global Navigation Satellite Systems (CN/GNSS), and Integrated Circuit Card (ICC) technologies.

The standards suite includes not only ‘requirements’ but also associated test procedures, in order to support conformity evaluation of EFC on-board and roadside equipment. It also includes security guidelines that can be useful in the preparation or evaluation of security requirements.

ISO/TS 12813:2009, Electronic fee collection – Compliance check communication for autonomous systems, was jointly developed by ISO technical committee ISO/TC 204, Intelligent Transport systems and CEN/TC 278, Road transport and traffic telematics.

New Delhi, 23rd July, 2008: The Association of Toll and Traffic Systems Integrators of India (ATTSII) has recommended guidelines for a suitable Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) to the working group formed by the Committee of Road Safety and Traffic Management, Ministry of Surface Transport and Highways to determine the technology for Advance Traffic Management Systems, Advance Travel or Information Systems and Electronic Toll collection Systems. The association proposes CEN 278 standard based on DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication) microwave technology for the Indian subcontinent keeping in mind the Indian environment and driving conditions.

Representing the association, Mr. Sachin Bhatia, President ATTSII and Country Director of KAPSCH METRO JV said, “CEN 278 is the most acceptable technology worldwide with interoperability standards. It is already successfully implemented at the Delhi – Gurgaon Expressway, the largest 32 lane toll plaza in India. Introduction of smart tags based on microwave technology has received overwhelming response from drivers who earlier had to wait in long queues for several hours at the Toll. Now, it only takes few seconds for each vehicle to pass through, significantly reducing waiting time. CEN 278 is a cost effective technology as multiple vendors are present in the market to ensure that customers get the best competitive deal.

“At a time when India is starting to put in place the ETC technology, it should adopt the most advanced technology that is pre tested, allows wider applications and faster data transfer speed. We cannot afford to lose time in deciding on a technology as there is an urgent need to meet the ever increasing traffic management requirements in India that suits the masses and is most viable to implement,” said Mr. Aman Kishore ,VP of the ATTSII and Managing Director of International Road Dynamics (IRD) South Asia.

“IRD have successfully implemented CEN 278 standard microwave based Electronic Toll Collection(ETC) technology in April 2006 at Hoogly River Bridge Commissioners (HRBC) site at Vidyasagar Setu – Kolkata. HRBC is a West Bengal Government organization for operation, implementation and maintenance of Hoogly Bridge. Currently, it has 24 lanes at 1 Plaza with 4 ETC Lanes and is efficiently meeting requirements of the department to cater to heavy traffic volumes in a matter of seconds at the entry to Kolkata city,” added Mr. Kishore.

He further explained, “Most of the Build Operate Transfer (BOT) operators are opting for technology for ETC which is more cost effective and operationally efficient for Indian conditions. Recently, we have bagged an order for implementation of CEN 278 standard microwave based ETC from one of biggest BOT and O&M operators in the country – Ideal Road Builders (IRB), Mumbai for one of its locations at Mumbai’s Entry Points. The decision of opting for Microwave based ETC technology by such a reputed company must have been taken after much due diligence.”

“The major advantage of the microwave technology is the presence of numerous vendors in the market that generates fair competition. We must understand the emerging traffic volume in our country and we must opt and guide for technology which best meets diverse user needs and national interest, rather than being guided by commercial interest of vendors.

“CEN 278 standard is based on microwave technology, making it more reliable, robust and viable. A very recent example is the stormy morning of 14th May; any other known standards based on other technologies like infrared would have created chaos at points where it would have been applied. This is because in dusty weather, data fails to be securely transmitted, resulting in distortion in reporting and further leading to revenue leakages at tolling booths. As ATTSII represents the road operators in India, we sincerely hope to provide the best infrastructure and cost effective method of ETC for the end benefits for our people, we strongly recommend CEN 278 to be included as a policy due to its advantages outweighing that of any other present technology, pre -tested and widely accepted”, further explained Mr. Bhatia.

“It is a proven technology being used for electronic toll collection for many years around the world. This proves also our more than 140 reference projects in 30 countries in the Asian/Pacific region, Europe, Australia, Latin America and in South Africa. This technology guarantees thanks the reliability of the tolling system and the low error rate the maximum toll income and it is the perfect choice for charging on motorways, expressways and even secondary main roads. With respect to interoperability the DSRC is the only working technology today providing the necessary standards and specifications. We have also already made very good experiences with using of the DSRC tolling systems for the improving of the road safety and for the optimizing of the traffic flow by the installation of traffic data sensors or variable message signs on the toll gantries,” said Erwin Toplak, Management Board, Kapsch TrafficCom AG.

About ATTSII

The Association of Toll and Traffic Systems Integrators of India (ATTSII) has been established in India for the Toll and traffic Industry players to share their views; ideas and technologies through a common platform. The Association comprises of the leading players of the Industry as below:

• IRD, Canada / India
• Kapsch TrafficCom AG; Austria/ India
• GEA; France / India
• CS ROUTE ; France/ India
• Metro Road Systems ; India
• Q-Free / Comvision , India

About Kapsch TrafficCom AG

Kapsch TrafficCom AG is an international supplier of innovative road traffic telematics solutions. Its principle business is the development and supply of electronic toll collection (ETC) systems, in particular for the multi-lane free-flow (MLFF) of the traffic, and the technical and commercial operation of such systems. Kapsch TrafficCom also supplies traffic management systems, with a focus on road safety and traffic control, and electronic access systems and parking management. With more than 140 reference projects in 30 countries in Europe, Australia, Latin America, in the Asian/Pacific region and in South Africa, and with almost 12 million on-board units (OBUs) and nearly 11,000 equipped lanes, Kapsch TrafficCom has positioned itself among the leading suppliers of ETC systems worldwide. Kapsch TrafficCom is headquartered in Vienna, Austria, and has subsidiaries and representative offices in 20 countries.

For further media queries contact:

Alka Ohja / Archana Sharda
Blue Lotus PR
alka@bluelotuspr.com / archanas@bluelotuspr.com
011-46571241 / 42
9958443490 / 9811838332

“We are pleased about being awarded the contracts for equipping the North-South Bypass Tunnel. This traffic project emphasises Australia’s leading position in traffic systems and fully electronic toll systems. With this contract, Kapsch TrafficCom can also continue its success story in Australia – since 2000, several major projects have been realised in Australia – e.g. in Melbourne and Sydney”, explains Erwin Toplak, Management Board Member of Kapsch TrafficCom AG.

Upon its completion in 2010, the North-South Bypass Tunnel in Brisbane will be the longest in Australia. The tunnel, with a project length of 6.8 kilometres, includes two 4.8 km double-lane tunnel tubes. Kapsch TrafficCom is equipping this with a central traffic telematics system, including two signal bridges and a complete back-office solution. When complete the tunnel will create a new link for north-south traffic underneath Brisbane and will significantly reduce the volume of traffic in the city.

Further information also available at: www.rivercitymotorway.com.au

Kapsch TrafficCom AG is an international provider of innovative traffic telematics systems, products and services. Kapsch TrafficCom mainly develops and supplies electronic toll collection (ETC) systems, especially multi-lane free-flow (MLFF) ETC systems as well as offering technical and commercial operating services for these systems. In addition, Kapsch TrafficCom offers traffic management solutions focusing on traffic safety and traffic control, electronic access control systems and parking space management. With more than 140 installed toll systems worldwide in 30 countries in Europe, Australia, Latin America, the Asia-Pacific region and South Africa, and with a total of more than eleven million transponders and 11,000 equipped traffic lanes, Kapsch TrafficCom has positioned itself as a worldwide market leader for ETC systems. Kapsch TrafficCom is headquartered in Vienna, Austria and has subsidiaries and representative offices in 18 countries.

Vienna, 31st March 2008

For further information:
Brigitte Herdlicka
Public Relations & Sponsoring
Kapsch Group
Phone: +43 (0) 50 811 2705
A-1120 Vienna, Wagenseilgasse 1
E-mail: brigitte.herdlicka@kapsch.net
www.kapschtraffic.com
www.kapsch.net

The Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways Thiru T.R. Baalu has said that the proposal for setting up of the National Road Safety and Traffic Management Board, as recommended by the Committee on Road Safety and Traffic Management, is in the final stages of approval. Similar Boards would be set up in the States also. Thiru Baalu was addressing the Seventeenth Meeting of the Consultative Committee of Members of Parliament attached to his Ministry here today.

Thiru Baalu also informed the Members that the Department of Road Transport and Highways is also contemplating constitution of a Committee of Experts to suggest a comprehensive scheme to improve the public transport system. The proposed scheme would stipulate certain reform measures to be undertaken by the States to be eligible for seeking financial assistance from the Central Government.

The Minister further informed that a ‘Working Group’ has been constituted by the Government to determine the technology for Advanced Traffic Management System, Advanced Travel or Information System and Electronic Toll collection. He said that a System is proposed to be installed for automatic traffic counting and classification to have better assessment of traffic moving on National highways. He said that these steps are being taken as part of Government’s efforts to give more emphasis on the modernisation of the toll collection system for which introduction of Intelligent Transport System (ITS) is proposed to be gradually introduced.

Thiru Baalu said that a proposal has recently been approved for creation of State and National Registers of driving licenses and registration certificates envisaging inter-linking of all Regional Transport Offices. This would enable creation of authentic database for road transport sector, ensuring transparency in the process of registration of motor vehicles and issuance of driving licenses at a total cost of Rs. 148 crore. The project period is two years. It would check issuance of fake driving licenses / registration certificates and lead to better enforcement of the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act / Rules, he added.

The Minister also informed that to formulate a scheme for trauma care facilities across the country in general and along the National Highways in particular, his Ministry has been working closely with the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare to work out a -2- combined plan of action. For this purpose, Thiru Baalu informed that the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has introduced a scheme for setting up of an integrated network of Trauma Centres along the GQ, North-South and East-West Corridors of the National Highways by upgrading the trauma care facilities in 140 identified State Government Hospitals at a total cost of Rs.732.75 crore during the Eleventh Five Year Plan period. Our Ministry has to supply 140 ambulances and NHAI has to provide 50 Ambulances with advanced life support equipment to identified hospitals.

Giving an account of the progress made on the National Highway Development Programme (NHDP), Thiru Baalu observed that upto February 2008, out of the 5,846 kms under the Golden Quadrilateral (GQ) Project, 4/6 laning of about 5,650 kms has been completed and works are in progress in the remaining 196 kms length. Out of about 7,300 kms length under the North-South and East-West Corridors, 4/6 laning was completed in 1,962 kms and works were under implementation in about 4,359 kms. Under NHDP Phase-III, out of 12,109 kms length, 4-laning has been completed in 330 kms and works are in progress in about 1,745 kms and under NHDP Phase-V, out of 6,500 kms length, 6-laning was in progress in about 1,030 kms.

So far 86 projects valued at Rs.29,576.94 crore have been awarded on BOT (Toll) basis. Out of these, 34 projects have been completed and 52 projects are in progress. Also, so far 25 projects valued at Rs. 9,411.88 crore have been awarded on BOT (Annuity) basis; out of which, 8 projects have been completed and 17 projects are in progress, the Minister informed.

The Members of Parliament who participated in the meeting are: S/Shri M.R. Reddy, S. Ajaya Kumar, L.R. Patil, Hari Kewal Prasad, M.L. Mandal, Tiruchi Siva and Ms. Mabel Rebello.

Source: pib.nic.in

The Project has a total of 24 ETC with some of them mixed type with cash and smart card facility ; the remaining being cash and smart Card type.

All lanes are equipped with Automatic vehicle classification systems . All the three plazas are interconnected through a WAN.

The First Kapsch Toll System In India Finalized: Toll System For One Of The Most Frequented Highways Is Up And Running.

Since End of January 2008 runs the operation of the first road toll project of Kapsch TrafficCom AG in India with no problems. Within a joint venture structure – the Kapsch Metro Joint Venture – Kapsch TrafficCom alongside the Indian Metro Road Systems Ltd. fitted one section of the National Highway No. 8 with a modern manual/electronic toll system. This highway covers the route from Delhi to Gurgaon and is one of the most frequented roads in the region. The central toll plaza with altogether 32 toll lanes is one of the largest toll stations in all of Asia.

Since January 2008, the road from Delhi to Gurgaon features a modern manual/electronic toll system based on microwave technology (CEN 278). Completion of this toll system marks the successful finalization of the first road toll project of Kapsch TrafficCom in India. The principal, licensee DS Constructions Ltd., decided to award the contract to the Kapsch Metro Joint Venture in September 2006.

“For us, the selection of KapschMetro JV as a technology partner was an important step in the management of the traffic volumes on the project. The technology selected is stable, secure and has processed over 3 million transactions to date with no problems. The installation of the equipment was done in difficult circumstances with live traffic of over 130,000 per day travelling through the lanes during the installation period. The equipment implementation of the Delhi-Gurgaon toll project is a success story, Kapsch Metro JV delivered the project on schedule and to our complete satisfaction“, explains Allan Le Roux, Chief Operations Officer- Tolling of DS Constructions Ltd.

“Kapsch has already performed successful projects in India in the past, contracting GSM-R work for Indian Railroads, the Indian national railway system. With this commission, we were able to enter the Indian toll system market within an extremely short time, owing our success largely to our staff’s wealth of know-how and to the many years of experience we have in the Asian area. For me, the route that has now been completed is just the beginning of numerous further business ventures in Asia“, says Erwin Toplak, Board Member of Kapsch TrafficCom AG.

The Toll Road project is constructed on a 20 year BOT basis and has a length of 27 km long and rates among the most heavily trafficked projects in the region and provides important connectivity to the Indira Gandhi International Airport of New Delhi and the “New Millennium City” Gurgaon which boasts as having one of the worlds biggest shopping malls! The three toll plazas on the project have a total of 56 toll lanes. The main toll plaza located on the Delhi Haryana Border has 32 toll lanes. Motorists are able to use cash or use a Smart Card in at all lanes except the 4 dedicated non stop lanes with exclusive payment via microwave TAGs.

Kapsch TrafficCom AG is a global provider of innovative road traffic telematic systems, products, and services. Kapsch TrafficCom develops and supplies electronic toll collection systems, in particular multi-lane free-flow (MLFF) systems, and is also able to act as the technical and commercial manager for operating these systems. Further, Kapsch TrafficCom offers traffic management solutions (with the focus on road safety and traffic control), electronic access control systems, and parking space management. Kapsch TrafficCom has established itself among the global market leaders for ETC systems with more than 140 installed toll systems in 30 countries in Europe, Australia, Latin America, the Asian/Pacific Area, and South Africa, which altogether feature more than eleven million transponders and about 11’000 fitted lanes. Kapsch TrafficCom is headquartered in Vienna, Austria, and has subsidiaries and representative offices in 18 countries.

Vienna on 27th March, 2008

For further information, please contact:
Brigitte Herdlicka
Public Relations & Sponsoring
Kapsch Group
Phone: +43 (0) 50 811 2705
1120 Vienna, Wagenseilgasse 1
E-Mail: brigitte.herdlicka@kapsch.net
www.kapschtraffic.com
www.kapsch.net