The Dutch vehicle authority has awarded a contract to tolling company Emovis to design, install and maintain the first free flow tolling system in the Netherlands on two new major roads.
The first project is for the new highway A24 (Blankenburgverbinding) near Rotterdam which is currently being built. It connects the A15 and A20 and consists of two tunnels, Hollandtunnel and Maasdeltatunnel. Free flow tolling is introduced by the time the new highway opens in 2024. It is expected that this highway will be used by 60,000 vehicles daily.
The second infrastructure project, currently still an option, is a new stretch of highway near Arnhem/Nijmegen called ViA15. It extends the A15 to join the A12 and includes a new bridge over the Pannerdensch canal. Emovis’ tolling system would be extended to this new bridge when it opens. It is expected to be used by 33,000 vehicles daily.
Emovis, which is owned by Abertis Mobility Services, is contracted to design, install and maintain both free flow tolling systems. The contract includes an initial eight-year term, with three two-year extensions. After over 15 years working in different countries across Europe to implement state-of-the art electronic tolling solutions, this will be the first project for Emovis in the Netherlands.
It is the first time that free flow tolling is used in the Netherlands. The Ministry of Infrastructure, two of their executive agencies (RDW and Rijkswaterstaat) and Central Judicial Collection Agency cooperate to implement and execute this new form of tolling. RDW has the role of toll collector.
“The award of this contract is an important milestone in our program,” says Jan Strijk, director Toll Collect at RDW. “We place high demands on the equipment and the cooperation with the supplier. I am confident that Emovis can deliver on that.”
(Picture – Emovis)
Long History
Emovis designs and employs mobility solutions for urban and interurban road networks. The company has a long history of providing free flow systems. For example, the company has:
Enabled complex transitions from traditional Electronic Toll Collection systems to multi-lane free flow for key motorways such as the London Orbital M25 in Dartford or the crossings of the Mersey River near Liverpool in the UK or the Ring road M50 of Dublin in Ireland
Delivered video tolling systems in other existing manual toll collection roads in the UK and Poland
Installed Open Road Tolling systems (ORT) throughout the US, Canada and Puerto Rico.
“It is an absolute honor to have been given the chance to work, for the first time, in the Netherlands. As one of the best-connected countries in Europe, we are proud to participate in such an ambitious project which will surely deliver excellent results to authorities and users,” says Christian Barrientos, CEO of Emovis.
“RDW and Emovis have many shared values, including a commitment to providing safe and efficient access across tolls and promoting economic development,” says Mr. Barrientos. “We already have a deep understanding of their business rules and workflows. With this knowledge, we bring processes and systems focused on customer experience and cost savings to RDW’s operations”, he adds.
