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Total Toll Ticketing

The Pennsylvania Turnpike is the key transportation route within the state of Pennsylvania and a vital link in the transportation network of the eastern United States. The turnpike is a toll highway system operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in the state of Pennsylvania, USA with a total length of 551 miles (882 km). It incorporates two payment systems; EZ-Pass and the toll ticket system. A driver electing to use the toll ticket system receives a paper ticket on entry and pays on exit; the fare is calculated based on the entrance and exit points. Scanning the tickets, coupled with counting vehicle axles and weighing the vehicle, determines how much each vehicle must pay. The fare for each vehicle class is pre-printed on the back of the ticket for each exit, resulting in a chart with eight (8) classes and 36 interchanges (locations where entry and exit can take place). Since the fare is different from each entry point to every exit point, there are 36 different sets of tickets, one for each interchange.

The ticket that the driver receives on entering the toll road has, for years, been printed by an impact dot matrix printer onto a ticket with magnetic stripe. Information concerning the vehicle and its entry time and place are stored on this magnetic stripe for later reading. Because some vehicles, such as large trucks, have high windows, the ticket terminal has a transport system that can present the ticket from a high slot (for trucks) or a low slot (for cars). A sensing system determines which slot to use based on the vehicle height and type as it enters the toll lane.

As each ticket contains a pre-printed chart of fares to each exit, and these fares are different from each entry point, there are 36 different types of pre-printed tickets to purchase every time the toll fares must be changed. This huge number of variants, coupled with the qualification testing for the magnetic stripe required on each ticket, make the entire procurement process time-consuming and expensive. In addition, if the fares are to be changed, the older tickets with the invalid fare charts at each interchange must be discarded and destroyed when the new tickets become valid, resulting in further costs and wasted paper. Overall, changing toll fares was a hugely expensive, massive undertaking and a logistical nightmare.

TransCore, the world’s leading transportation solutions provider, handles technology issues for the PTC. In designing a new toll ticketing system, a major goal was to eliminate the tremendous difficulties and cost in changing toll fares. For help in selecting a printing device, TransCore contacted Hengstler GmbH. Hengstler team members described 2ST™ technology and explained how TransCore could print the fare chart on the back of the ticket while simultaneously printing the front of the ticket, rather than pre-printing it. This eliminates the need to replace any paper when changing fares, as the paper itself contains no interchange-specific, pre-printed data, and all interchanges could use the same paper. TransCore and the PTC were sold on 2ST™ as their solution, and worked with Hengstler closely to ensure that the product met their needs as the development proceeded. They ultimately selected the Hengstler TwinSide TS-56™ printer with presenter for their application.

The new tolling system uses four Hengstler TwinSide TS-56™ printers in each terminal rather than one with a high/low mechanical transport system. In spite of the greater number, the four Hengstler printers cost less than the one impact dot matrix printer being used previously. Two TS-56 printers are located in the high, “truck” position, and two in the lower, “car” position. As with the earlier implementation, a vehicle sensing system determines whether a high or low ticket is required. Rather than transporting it mechanically, the high or low printers are selected electronically, reducing mechanical complexity and the possibility of paper jams.

In order to maximize throughput, the new system alternates between the two printers at each height. This allows TransCore to minimize the wait for any drivers entering the PA Turnpike through the entry lanes. One printer prints the data for the following vehicle, while the other printer has already printed and presented the ticket for the current vehicle before it reaches the ticket terminal. As the toll fare charts are stored in the TwinSide TS-56, a great deal of time is saved in not having to transmit this chart digitally for each ticket. When the charts need to be updated, the terminal can remain operational as each printer is updated with new charts separately while the remaining printers continue to service drivers.

A two-dimensional barcode printed on the ticket stores a reference number and information about the vehicle, which was previously stored in the magnetic stripe. This barcode is multiply redundant, so that the barcode can still be read even if much of it is missing or obscured.

If a driver fails to take their ticket, the TwinSide TS-56 will retract it into a “reject” bin within the terminal to prevent subsequent drivers from taking the wrong ticket.

At the exit, the driver surrenders the ticket to the toll-taker. The 2D barcode is scanned and the driver pays the toll-taker the amount displayed. The 2D-barcode offers security benefits over the magnetic stripe as the printed barcode is much better protected from data loss and is almost impossible to counterfeit, which protects against fraud.

The TS-56 printer is currently available in paper width ranges of 54mm (fixed) and 49 to 60mm (adjustable). The TwinSide TS printer is ideal for applications where pre-printed paper is currently used, or where additional information (advertising, terms and conditions, directions, etc.) must appear on the back of a printout. High speed serial and USB interfaces, coupled with high print speeds and the ability to handle paper from up to 140 g/m² or higher, and an optional presenter, result in a powerful, versatile solution to many business issues.

Ultimately, several factors were influential in TransCore’s selection of the TS-56:

  • 2ST™ Technology – This allowed the elimination of 36 different, pre-printed ticket stocks, greatly reducing costs when changing toll fares and allowing all interchanges to use the same paper.
  • 2D Barcode – The TwinSide TS-56 determines the configuration of the 2D barcode itself. TransCore needed only to send the information that needs to be encoded, and the printer does the rest.
  • Wide environmental range – Since the toll ticket terminals are located outdoors, they are susceptible to a wide range of temperature and humidity variation. The generous environmental range of the TS-56 was able to meet these challenging requirements.

This new system allows the PTC to change fares for the toll roads easily without having to pre-print expensive, new tickets for each interchange or discard massive amounts of pre-printed paper. The 2D barcode provides added security. Furthermore, inventory, logistical and freight costs can be reduced as only one toll ticket paper type is now required across the entire PA Turnpike, instead of 36.

Not only does the PA Turnpike new toll ticketing system improve efficiency and reduce costs significantly, but it also has a positive environmental impact as a result of reduced paper waste, less energy and fuel in production and distribution of paper, eliminating the need to send the old tickets with magnetic stripe to a landfill, and fewer harvested trees.

As the PA Turnpike moves forward with the installation of this new system, the results are encouraging. As of this writing, 650,000 tickets have printed from the first 200 units installed with almost perfect performance. Congratulations to the PA Turnpike and TransCore for designing and implementing such an advanced system while greatly reducing their costs!

For further information concerning this article, contact Anne Martin at anne.martin@hengstler.com.