Norwegian road tolling: scope, limits and perspectives for the future

Transcription

1 Norwegian road tolling: scope, limits and perspectives for the future Morten Welde Norwegian Public Roads Administration ITS UK, Annual RUC forum, London, November 12,

2 Presentation outline 1. Scope of Norwegian road tolling 2. Political and public feasibility 3. The Oslo toll cordon 4. The AutoPASS system 5. Perspectives for the future: the AutoPASS strategy 6. Concluding comments 2

3 Tolls make up an increasing part of Norwegian road investments 45,0 40,0 35,0 30,0 Share in percent 25,0 20,0 15,0 10,0 5,0 0, Year 3

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6 Why have toll financing become so widespread in Norway? Long tradition Bridges/tunnels=> Motorways=> Toll cordons Earlier implementation of much wanted road projects Regulatory framework easing the planning of new projects and the following up of existing ones Technological development through PPP and quality partnerships, later through efficient use of market based solutions 6

7 Why toll cordons? (Bergen, Oslo, Trondheim ) Rural bias in the parliament => under-developed road system in larger cities Public funds not forthcoming Massive investment backlog which had to be covered The NPRA acted as an enthusiast and a driving force to convince local politicians that tolling was the only solution 7

8 Successful road tolling requires involvement from both the public and the private sector Public sector - Initiative and decision (local authorities) - Concession (Parliament) - Regulation (NPRA) - Information (NPRA) - International standardisation (NPRA) - Ownership: road, equipment, technology, standards (NPRA) - Financial and operational responsibility (toll company) Norwegian road tolling Private involvement Cooperation/partnerships - Suppliers of OBUs, road side equipment and central system (Q-Free, Techsidel, Siemens, Kapsch etc.) - Toll station operations (various national companies) - Interoperability, R&D, contract development and maintenance, campaigns etc. 8

9 The Oslo toll cordon has recently been converted to a fully automatic charging system The largest toll project in Norway, in operation since 1990 and recently given a 15 year extension to its concession Main objective is revenue generation but differentiated charges to tackle congestion and emissions are being discussed Revenues are used for road construction and PT investment and operations Charging used to be done by means of OBUs and coin machines/attendants Charging is now fully automatic 9

10 The Oslo toll cordon: main characteristics Characteristic Population of Oslo Average annual daily traffic Number of toll stations Period of operation Mode of operation Percentage tag holders Standard toll rates Gross revenues per year Operating costs per year The Oslo toll cordon /7 Automatic (OBU/ANPR) 80 % 2.25 /

11 The Oslo toll cordon: more emphasis on aesthetics 11

12 Norwegian toll financing is based on the AutoPASS system A DSRC system based on the European CEN standard Open standard owned and managed by the NPRA Standardised hardware and software for all projects Full national (and Nordic) interoperability allowing motorists to use the same OBU in all Norwegian and Nordic toll projects (One OBU One Contract One Invoice) The AutoPASS system is owned by the NPRA the specifications, the OBUs and all road side equipment 12

13 One in two Norwegian vehicles are equipped with the AutoPASS OBU % % % % % % 0 0 % Vehicle population OBU share 13

14 AutoPASS is the most widely applied ITS measure in Norway Tolls make up 45 % of total road investments, 90 % of all tolls are collected through the AutoPASS system The only ETC system used for Norwegian toll financing Average operating costs 15 % of gross revenues User friendly and an ITS success story But a huge potential for improvements A strategy for the coming decade has hence been developed: 1) Areas of application, 2) Organisation and 3) Technology 14

15 The AutoPASS strategy: main objectives Main objective: By 2020 AutoPASS shall be a safe, efficient and user friendly system for services between public authorities and all Norwegian vehicles. Milestone objectives: Milestone Objective New organisational framework. Toll companies no longer combined issuers/operators: issuing of tags/contracts and charging of tolls is managed by different actors. New areas of application Improved service level to all users of Norwegian toll road systems OBUs mandatory for all heavy vehicles The AutoPASS service expanded to also include ferry crossings on the trunk road network OBUs mandatory for all Norwegian vehicles 15

16 AutoPASS should be used to achieve transport policy objectives AutoPASS should be used for - Road tolling - Congestion charging - Low Emission Zones - Vehicle taxes - Hazardous goods/traffic surveillance - Real time traffic information AutoPASS could be used for - Ferry connections - Public transport - Parking - Access control AutoPASS should not be used for - Commercial services (petrol, car wash, food etc.) 16

17 Scenario towards 2020 Present situation Experiences Need for change New tags New organisation -Issuer -Information -Service New areas of application - Information - LEZ/CC - Tax enforcement New areas of application - Electronic licence plate - Mandatory tags Convergence DSRC / GPS- GPRS 17

18 Norway: what happens next? The strategy should be embedded in the NPRA top management and with the Ministry for Transportation Standardised charging solutions Improved quality of operations and service level to users More sophisticated charging schemes: kilometre charging (motorways) and time differentiated charges (urban areas) European interoperability 18

19 What could the UK learn from Norway??? Implementing unpopular measures such as congestion pricing and/or tolling requires a relentless enthusiast Standardised technology and operational and legal frameworks eases the planning of new and following up of existing schemes Do not let the best thinkable solution become the enemy of the good => reliable and cheap to purchase and operate technologies could be purchased tomorrow RUC should finance new infrastructure and be used to decongest congested areas, not replace existing vehicle taxation systems Do not leave the responsibility for RUC strategy and implementation to local authorities or the market alone, there is a role for government in RUC policy! 19

20 Some useful references Amdal, E., Bårdsen, G., Johansen, K. and Welde, M., Operating costs in Norwegian toll companies: a panel data analysis. Transportation 34, pp Larsen, O.I. and Østmoe, K., The Experience of Urban Toll Cordons in Norway. Journal of Transport Economics and Policy 35, pp Odeck, J. and Bråthen, S., Toll financing in Norway: the success, the failures and perspectives for the future. Transport Policy 9, pp Odeck, J. and Welde, M., Economic Evaluation of ITS Strategies the Case of the Oslo Toll Cordon. Paper presented at the 15th World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems, New York, November 16-20, Welde, M. and Fjelltun Bøe, R., The AutoPASS Strategy. Paper presented at the 15th World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems, New York, November 16-20,

21 Thank you! 21