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Came across this yesterday... Making the fast lane on the motorway a toll road is apparently being considered. Now, I suspect, that if this is being considered, it would be safe to assume that they will not be adding little toll booths somewhere along the route, as they used to do on the Harbour Bridge. I would imagine, seeing as this would only add to congestion and bottlenecking, that the only 'feasible' way of turning this into a viable revenue collecting exercise would be to have automatic recognition systems that deduct the fee. I believe this is already in operation overseas, where a card of some sort is displayed on the driver's windscreen?
Can anyone expand on the exact nature of such systems?
Secondly, how does this work when you are not a regular on such roads and you don't have one of their cards or devices or whatever? Say you are a tourist or something... Anyone with more info?
Can anyone expand on the exact nature of such systems?
The technology is widely available in the form of UHF RFID tags operating in the range of 900hzt with strategically placed tag readers. Any vehicle with a tag or multiple tags fitted will automatically be detected by the tag readers and billed when driving on any designated toll road.
As I see it the technology is the easy bit, selling it to the public will be more difficult.
Step in the spin doctors and snake oil salesmen who sell it to the New Zealand public as an anti theft security measure for our own benefit with the promise of cheaper insurance premiums etc etc.
You may be surprised to learn that government has already set the wheels in motion for the compulsory “whole of vehicle micro dotting” and the fitting of immobilising devices to all new and imported vehicles less than 15 years old. There are advantages in such systems with huge reduction in the number of stolen cars in countries that use such measures.
Here are two articles I saved from the NZ Herald in January this year outlining their plan:
Unfortunately I can not give the links to these articles as I saved them to my hard drive. The NZ Herald now require payment for archived articles.
Quote:
12.01.05
The Government is making vehicle security measures - worth $400 per car - compulsory from mid 2006.
Justice Minister Phil Goff launched the Government's Vehicle Crime Reduction Programme today, saying the measures would reduce the $110 million yearly cost of vehicle thefts.
All imported cars, new or used, will have to have immobilisers and microscopic identification dots fitted -- a cost to be met by dealers.
Immobilisers prevent hotwiring by shutting the car down if the correct electronic signal contained in a key is not received.
Microdots of the vehicle's identification number would be spotted throughout the car on various parts, with any attempt to remove them leaving a smear still visible under ultraviolet light.
Both measures will apply to all new and used vehicles less than 15 years old imported when the regime comes into effect in about 18 months.
"Vehicle theft costs New Zealand about $110 million a year," Mr Goff said.
"It imposes on thousands of ordinary New Zealanders significant financial costs, involves major inconvenience, and adds to the cost of insurance premiums for every motorist."
Between 5 and 10 per cent of used vehicles being imported at present are fitted with immobilisers. In Western Australia, vehicle theft fell 34 per cent between 1999 and 2001 -- a period in which the number of vehicles with immobilisers increased to 70 per cent from 45 per cent. Vehicle theft fell 23 per cent in the United Kingdom from 1998 when immobilisers were made compulsory in new vehicles.
The microdots were likely to hit professional car thefts hard, Mr Goff said.
"Professional car crime usually involves taking a vehicle identification number from a deregistered car and putting it on a stolen vehicle of similar make, to give it a supposedly legitimate identity for re-sale."
Marking the whole of a vehicle by a means such as microdots was a proven deterrent in other countries, Mr Goff said. And in New Zealand, where Subaru began marking its cars last March, none had since been stolen.
Other initiatives of the strategy included:
* New Zealand joining Australia's Comprehensive Auto Theft Research System,
* changes to the deregistration system to make it harder for criminals to use deregistered vehicle information,
* an accredited secure parking scheme to recognise facilities with good lighting, manned barriers and high surveillance levels,
* a Vehicle Crime Reduction Action Group of government and industry representatives being created to monitor the initiatives and make recommendations.
NZPA
In the previous article the true cost of the “micro dotting” alone was understated by the government and argued in the following article to be between $350-$500 per vehicle, and $300 for an immobiliser, the cost to be passed on to “us” the consumer.
Quote:
Car owners face cost of theft device
13.01.05
By Ainsley Thomson
A plan to reduce car thefts has sparked fears of higher prices.
The Government said yesterday that it would make it compulsory to fit an immobiliser and 'whole of vehicle marking' - microdots of vehicle identification numbers - on new and imported vehicles less than 15 years old.
Justice Minister Phil Goff said the programme, coming within 18 months, aimed to slash the number of cars stolen, about 22,000 a year, and the $110 million paid out in insurance claims.
But some industry groups say the cost of the security could outweigh the benefit.
The Government says immobilisers should cost $300 a car and markings $100. This would be met by the importer, who would pass it on to the consumer. Around 150,000 cars are expected to be fitted each year.
But industry groups say the cost could be greater.
Motor Industry Association chief executive Perry Kerr said the association was behind making immobilisers compulsory but was concerned about the vehicle markings.
"We are sceptical of the costs that have gone into the Cabinet paper, which set it at about $100 a vehicle. At the moment the retail price of data dotting vehicles ranges from $350 to $500 per car.
"It is a huge logistical exercise to put markings on 200,000 cars a year and we have serious reservations about it. We believe they have gone too far."
Automobile Association spokesman George Fairbairn said if the Government's $400 figure was correct and 150,000 cars were fitted each year it would cost $60 million a year. And there had been a suggestion that the $400 figure was an underestimate.
"If the figure is more motorists could end up paying more than $110 million a year extra for new cars in order to prevent a $110 million problem which largely affects older cars."
Independent Motor Vehicle Dealers Association spokesman Malcolm Yorston said the measures should not be compulsory, but should be market driven.
However, the measures have been praised by the police, insurance industry and some car companies.
The insurance industry says if the plan succeeds car insurance will be cheaper.
Insurance Council chief executive Christopher Ryan said the council strongly supported the Government's move.
"If you reduce the cost of thefts, and this initiative is almost certain to do that, then long term it is likely it will result in greater efficiencies for the insurance companies."
Mr Goff said immobilisers were internationally recognised as the best way to reduce opportunist car theft.
In Western Australia car theft fell by 34 per between 1999 and 2001 during which time the number of vehicles fitted with immobilisers rose from 45 per cent to 70 per cent.
Whole of vehicle marking is designed to reduce the professional theft of cars. Subaru New Zealand said since it began using the vehicle marking on new models in March 2003 there had been no thefts of new cars.
Mr Goff said within 10 years up to 95 per cent of the vehicle fleet would be protected.
"It's the most effective way of getting a dramatic decrease in vehicle theft numbers," he said.
Other initiatives include membership of Australia's car theft database, changes to make it harder for criminals to use deregistered vehicle information and a scheme to recognise parking facilities with good levels of security.
What is an immobiliser?
An immobiliser stops hotwiring by interrupting the supply of power required to start an engine and can only be overridden by the correct electronic signal.
What is whole of vehicle marking?
Whole of vehicle marking involves placing the vehicle identification number on all parts of the car by applying several thousand microdots that are only visible through an ultraviolet viewer and are difficult to remove.
What is RFID?
RFID stands for radio frequency identification. It is a technology that has existed for decades. At a simple level, it is a technology that involves tags that emit radio signals and devices called readers that pick up the signal. RFID technology is a fundamental element of the EPCglobal network.
RFID tags are tiny microchips with memory and an antenna coil, thinner than paper and some only 0.3mm across! RFID tags listen for a radio signal sent by a RFID reader (also called a transceiver). When a RFID tag receives a query, it responds by transmitting its unique ID code and other data back to the reader. There are two types of RFID tags:
Passive RFID tags. Passive RFID tags can be as small as 0.3mm and don't require batteries. Rather, they are powered by the radio signal of a RFID reader, which "wakes them up" to request a reply. Passive RFID tags can be read from a distance of about 20 feet. Semi-passive RFID tags contain a small battery that boosts the range. Passive tags are generally read-only, meaning the data they contain cannot be altered or written over.
Active RFID tags. Active RFID tags, also called transponders because they contain a transmitter that is always "on", are powered by a battery, about the size of a coin, and are designed for communications up to 100 feet from the RFID reader. They are larger and more expensive than passive RFID tags, but can hold more data about the product and are commonly used for high-value asset tracking. Active RFID tags may be read-write, meaning data they contain can be written over and changed.
The cost of a UHF RFID tag: US$0.12.5 cents
It is my belief that the authorities will push the use of RFID tags to be fitted to vehicles as a cheaper option for road users.
Introduce toll roads and the basic infrastructure for policing their use (collecting revenue] is already set in place.
Alternately, RFID tags could be incorporated into the WOF or vehicle registration labels.
Joined: 05 Nov 2003
Posts: 814
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2005 12:30 pm Post Subject:
Great post Azimuth. Thanks for getting this on the record. I wasn't aware of the imminent law change either. Did this plan actually get made into law or is still a proposal only?
I think that the toll roads are no doubt a significant part of this intended strategy. Already having the technology in place in cars would make such schemes so much easier to administer.
As for immobilisers, your description clarified things for me. I had imagined an immobiliser was something that would allow remote and active immobilisation of a car - perhaps it has this capability as well?
Recently I saw a doco on the city of London. They have 500,000 surveillance cameras in and around the city and huge dedicated departments full of computers for monitoring and policing and analysing facial recognition matches etc. I was staggered at the sheer volume of it all. They showed a guy loitering in the street smoking. They decided he looked like a pick pocket. They had different cameras watching him. They were talking about sending police in to sneak up behind him etc etc. They had under close scrutiny for a long time. Then it was discovered he was simply an 'innocent shopper'. Invasive simply isn't the word for it.
Anyway, they showed how London's pay to drive areas work. Basically to reduce inner city traffic, they have designated areas for drivers who have paid a fee. They have signs up on the fringes reminding drivers to pay etc. Anyone entering the area without paying receives a fine in the mail. The way they police it though, is through sophisticated number plate analysis. Their cameras capture the number plate of every car entering the zone, the software analyses the numbers on the fly (recognising the numbers as actual numbers in real time, not initially as an image in the way that a scanner might work!). Their computers then check that against the record of who has paid and bingo - you have your list of 'criminal drivers'.
All this is happening little by little, more and more invasive technology is put in place and made legal. Then bang! All of a sudden you can introduce a whole raft of measures in the blink of an eye that take advantage of the technology. :evil:
P.S. You might want to check those links. I searched in Google for the article you mention and was able to go straight to the page - no subscription message or anything.
I just found these examples of RFID and toll road collection
Quote:
At costs as low as 5 cents per unit, RFID tags are now entering the price range at which they will become cost-effective for many daily uses. At the end of April 2003, the German retailer, Metro Group, announced the opening of Future Store, an experimental outlet that will feature RFID technology in warehouse management, shelf-stacking control and automated checkouts. Customers will be able to pass through a payment area without having to queue and wait for their purchases to be scanned and priced.
Other RFID implementations include:
E-ZPASS, an automated car toll system on roads and bridges in the northeastern United States. The system allows motorists to pay tolls electronically, reducing travel time and improving the efficiency of toll collection.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is using an electronic toll collection system at its Hudson River crossings. It recently approved a $30-million project to install E-ZPass in parking spaces at Kennedy International, Newark International and La Guardia Airports in the next 12 months.
MobilExxon Speedpass uses RFID technology to enable customers to buy petrol and other goods from its petrol stations in the US without using cash or credit cards. The customer waves an RFID key fob near the petrol pump and a transponder recognises the customer's dedicated ID code. It then automatically charges purchases to an existing credit/debit card. By 1998, Mobil reported that there were 1.5 million Speedpass customers and that petrol sales had increased by $8 million per month. Today, Speedpass may be used as a credit card to purchase items at convenience stores. Its use is being extended to Exxon stations and Mobil reports that there are now five million Speedpass customers. Few had predicted that wireless ID cards would so easily replace magnetic stripe credit. RFID tags have, in effect, become credit cards.
Queensland Motorways Limited has long been considered a leader in the use of tolling systems, procedures and technologies to ensure tolling efficiency.
In June 2001, the most comprehensive cutover to electronic tolling to occur in Australia was successfully managed by Queensland Motorways Limited at their Gateway and Logan Motorway toll plazas with the introduction of E toll.
This incorporation of state-of-the-art electronic transponder technology means Queensland Motorways Limited’s E toll system will deliver a range of benefits, including a significant increase in vehicular capacities resulting from more efficient tolling.
Queensland Motorways is a highly customer-focused company that is committed to providing smart, time and cost effective tolling solutions. They operate one of the largest toll collection systems in Australia, including the Gateway Bridge, the Logan Motorway and the Port of Brisbane Motorway. More than 150,000 vehicles travel on their motorways each day
Contactless smart cards for electronic toll collection in Malaysia:
This is a very interesting read.
Quote:
Philips Semiconductors and EFKON today announced their co-operation in non-stop Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) using contactless MIFARE® smart cards. The first major project within this co-operation is the ETC Scheme in Malaysia. EFKON is using MIFARE technology, in combination with advanced infrared light transmission, for the national roll-out of the non-stop ETC scheme.
The local operator has already issued more than 200,000 contactless MIFARE smart cards to the public. The non-stop road toll project covers most of the Malaysian highway network, including the world's longest toll road, the 800 km Plus-Highway. Within the first ten days of the roll-out, 50,000 On-Board-Units (OBUs) were sold to the public. In total, 200 lanes and an estimated one million MIFARE OBUs are scheduled to be in operation upon completion of the entire project.
The EFKON system works via an infrared transceiver in the toll booth communicating with a battery-operated OBU based on a MIFARE read/write device, which contains a reloadable MIFARE smart card. The OBU is a matchbox-sized device with an LCD display and mounted inside the car's windscreen. EFKON's open concept allows toll operators to start with cash-collection and touch/go reader lanes and upgrade to multilane freeflow traffic, where the card is read automatically without the driver having to stop at a toll booth or gantry. The system can also be used to enhance existing MIFARE touch-and-go solutions.
Non-smart card based systems need installation of non-stop equipment in all locations. The combined MIFARE-based touch-and-go and non-stop operation requires such installations only in high traffic areas, which leads to considerable overall cost savings. Service is improved, as the card can be used for any purpose, such as gasoline loyalty programs. With guaranteed accuracies of greater than 99.9 % for infrared data channel transmission, this system is a fast and highly efficient method of toll collection which can significantly reduces traffic congestion at road tolls.
"The potential size of this road toll scheme is enormous and further enhances Philips Semiconductors' vision of MIFARE being the key to people's mobility", explained Alexander Harrer, product line manager Chip Card ICs at Philips Semiconductors. "Imagine you get in your car and drive through a road toll. Your fee is deducted from a MIFARE card on the fly. Then you reach a park & ride where you use the same card to pay for the parking. You get on the bus and again pay your fare with the same card. In addition, this card can be used as your banking card. MIFARE enables a truly seamless journey with a single smart card."
Max Staudinger, director of Marketing and Sales at EFKON added, "Recent years have shown the need for improved Electronic Toll Collection systems. We believe Philips Semiconductors' open MIFARE interface technology, compliant with ISO 14443 A, has ideally positioned us to address these needs and improve traffic flow in an increasingly car-dependant world." Max Staudinger continued, "The well-established multiple sourcing of MIFARE provides the most competitive prices for leading edge technology and is a must for such major infrastructure decisions."
Philips Semiconductors' MIFARE Architecture Platform is a compatible family of contactless and dual interface (contact and contactless on a single chip) smart card ICs, based on a single MIFARE reader platform. With well over 2.5 billion card transactions in the last four years, the open MIFARE technology has become the industry standard for contactless smart cards and is used in an estimated 90% of all contactless schemes. MIFARE corresponds to the international standard for contactless smart cards, ISO/IEC 14443 A.
EFKON was established in 1994 and is based in Austria, with regional offices located in Malaysia, Beijing and Pretoria. Already the company has achieved significant market presence and aims to provide future-proof infrastructure solutions. EFKON Electronics Division has developed the most advanced non-stop Electronic Toll Collection system in the world, called IS®. IS® works in freeflow traffic for speeds up to 300 km/h. Most infrastructure (IS) solutions use contactless smart cards but, by using the new medium of infrared light technology, IS® achieves unprecedented reliability of data transmission. Since it uses infrared light, IS® requires no radio licenses, is free of interference problems and works perfectly with dark windscreens. Additional information on EFKON can be obtained by accessing its home page at http://www.efkon.com.
Philips Semiconductors, a division of Royal Philips Electronics, headquartered in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, is the eighth largest semiconductor supplier in the world. Philips Semiconductors is a leader with a proven reputation in the development and production of cryptocontroller and contactless smart card ICs as well as in components for radio frequency identification. Philips Semiconductors' innovations in digital audio, video and mobile technology position the company as a leader in the consumer, multimedia and wireless communications markets. Sales offices are located in all major markets around the world and are supported by regional application labs. Additional information on Philips Semiconductors can be obtained by accessing its home page at http://www.semiconductors.philips.com
Thanks for getting this on the record. I wasn't aware of the imminent law change either. Did this plan actually get made into law or is still a proposal only?
Not that I am aware of, unless it was pushed through during the wee hours of the morning. I'm sure it would take some time and may cause quite a debate which we would have heard about.
Melody Anderson wrote:
P.S. You might want to check those links. I searched in Google for the article you mention and was able to go straight to the page - no subscription message or anything.
Found this 2004 press release by Transit New Zealand in relation to the proposed toll roads. Easy now to see which system they will adopt to gather toll revenue.
Quote:
Toll Systems Project Backgrounder
Wednesday, 15 September 2004, 3:18 pm
Press Release: Transit New Zealand
15 September 2004
Transit is proposing a free-flow electronic toll collection system and a nationally integrated toll management system. The national toll management system would also be available to other Road Controlling Authorities (on a transaction fee basis) to provide coordinated management for the collection, processing and enforcement of toll fees for any toll road projects.
An electronic toll collection system would involve vehicles being identified electronically on the toll road for example via a transponder (mounted in the vehicle) or video image, with the toll deducted from an established account or the vehicle owner invoiced later……..
Joined: 05 Nov 2003
Posts: 814
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Posted: Tue Sep 27, 2005 11:40 am Post Subject:
Sounds like it's gone way beyond the idea simply being 'mooted'. Evidently, with the advent of these technologies dollar signs are flashing in the eyes of many authorities who see their chance to implement revenue gathering schemes on a broad scale. I'm sure this must be the tip of the iceberg in terms of preparations going on in New Zealand for mass implementation. And you can bet that for everything the public is told, there is a wealth of activity going on behind the scenes (as with the photo ID/facial recognition driver licences) :-s
Can anyone expand on the exact nature of such systems?
Smart Number Plates are inevitably how agencies within the New Zealand Central Government and or Local Government will implement toll roads in the (near) future. See the following interesting video clip from Accenture:
Note that several New Zealand Government Departments including Work and Income (WINZ), Inland Revenue Department, New Zealand Customs Service and the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services are Clients of Accenture.
For more information on Accenture see my post of Sun Nov 27, 2005 2:31 pm in the RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) an emerging technology thread here:
Joined: 22 Feb 2004
Posts: 140
Location: Auckland, NZ
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2005 11:12 am Post Subject:
Just a quick thought....
I was under the impression that as a New Zealand Citizen, I already own the roads. Whats more, I pay for the building of more of them each time I fill up my car with petrol.
Seems a bit out-of-order that we are about to be charged AGAIN for the privilege of using something we already own.
Seems a bit out-of-order that we are about to be charged AGAIN for the privilege of using something we already own.
Although I have heard little talk on the “toll road” issue lately, you can bet your last smart dollar it is being planned behind closed doors right now for implimentation at some later date.
I presume you viewed the video then. The video is in your face, blunt and straight to the point. It talks about government and other enterprises having control, whilst lowering labour and administrative cost and increasing their revenue (tax).
A silent, seamless portal to citizen’s wallets, or dare I say it, our smart cards. What’s in it for the public…………….let me think……………..no, I’m afraid I can not think of any advantages.
Aussie offers to build our roads - and collect tolls
Quote:
25.10.05
By Mathew Dearnaley
Australian businessman Tony Shepherd, who sold New Zealand its Anzac frigates in tough negotiations in the 1980s, is back offering to bankroll new roads in return for collecting tolls from them.
Why an Australian? Surely New Zealand has an over abundance of qualified bureaucratic “Sheriff of Nottingham” types capable of planning and implementing these toll road$.
Media Release from Transit New Zealand 15 September 2004
Proposed toll system Transit is proposing a free-flow electronic toll collection system and a nationally integrated toll management system. The national toll management system would also be available to other Road Controlling Authorities (on a transaction fee basis) to provide coordinated management for the collection, processing and enforcement of toll fees for any toll road projects.
An electronic toll collection system would involve vehicles being identified electronically on the toll road for example via a transponder (mounted in the vehicle) or video image, with the toll deducted from an established account or the vehicle owner invoiced later.
A nationally integrated toll management system would provide for economies of scale and efficiencies by avoiding the need for separate toll systems for each toll road. Electronic toll collection offers the greatest benefits in terms of achieving free-flow traffic conditions on toll roads, by minimising inconvenience to road users and reducing safety risks.
