IBM finishes $22m Qld toll system

in brief IBM today said it had finished its deployment of a toll and traffic management system for Queensland's road authority.

The 18-month project had IBM designing, building and deploying a central tolling system to enable Queensland Motorway to cut down on traffic snarls via the removal of cash toll payments. IBM had been appointed in 2008 as the systems integrator for the project, working alongside infrastructure provider Thales. The total value of the project was $22 million.

The system uses roadside sensors and imaging technology (for licence plates) to carry out transactions, supported by an SAP customer relationship management database containing vehicle and owner information. According to Big Blue, traffic incidents around the toll booths had decreased by 80 per cent.

The system was also meant to enable more intelligent roads. "The technology and system developed and implemented for free-flow tolling will greatly assist Queensland Motorways in providing customers with access to information such as projected travel times and help them make informed travel decisions," Phil Mumford, chief executive officer of Queensland Motorways said in a statement. "The idea ultimately is to have 'a motorway that thinks' — a more intelligent solution that will give our customers a better range of options for their journeys."