Austrian end-to-end intelligent transportation systems (ITS) provider Kapsch TrafficCom is expanding its toll management footprint in Europe by equipping a new Greek motorway with a hybrid tolling system built on the ‘rebate’ charging model.
Kapsch will be installing its equipment at 30 free-flow tolling ‘rebate’ stations on the new state-of-the-art Olympia Odos motorway in Greece. The contract has been awarded by the Canadian multidisciplinary professional services company, IBI Group, which is acting as the prime consultant for the Apion Kleos Construction JV (Joint Venture) consortium, which is building the new road. As well as the tolling equipment, Kapsch’s contract also includes ongoing technical support for systems’ service and maintenance, based on a yearly agreement. The new Olympia Odos highway is one of the most significant motorway concessions in Greece, linking the cities of Athens, Corinth and the port city of Patras on the Peloponnese, via 126 miles (202km) of tolled motorway.
The planned upgrade will offer the first distance-based pricing model in Greece, and it will available to all Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) users on the Olympia Odos highway. The solution is based on the concept of providing a rebate to road users if they do not travel the total mileage corresponding to an average distance charging zone, which is the current charging model. This new model is considered a ‘hybrid’ or ‘rebate’ system. The new solution involves the development of 30 entry and exit ramps, equipped with full tolling and enforcement stations for the detection and classification of passing vehicles. The journeys recorded by the Roadside Systems (RSS) paired with those recorded in conventional toll plazas will calculate the rebate amount. Other motorway concessions in Greece are expected to adopt this hybrid tolling system and rebate model.
