Automatic toll collection will be put into operation from July 1st.

The Ministry of Transport has finalized the progress of implementing the installation of the automatic toll collection system (ETC) on National Highway 1 and Ho Chi Minh Road through the Central Highlands before June 30, completing the trial run and putting it into operation from July 1.

In the initial phase, toll stations still apply both non-stop and one-stop toll collection in parallel to serve the diverse needs of vehicle owners.

Waiting for BOT investor's consent

At the meeting on the progress of non-stop toll collection on BOT projects on the morning of March 2, according to the assessment of the authorities and project investors, the non-stop toll collection system with modern integrated technology will help investors avoid losses, negativity and save fuel and travel time because they do not have to stop to pay, print tickets, control vehicle load...

According to Deputy Minister in charge of the Ministry of Transport Nguyen Hong Truong, during the recent Tet peak, traffic jams occurred on the roads leading to the gateways of Ho Chi Minh City and the southern gateways of Hanoi... which directly affected people's travel. In response to this situation, the Ministry of Transport has directed BOT toll station investors to open the gates for vehicles to pass if congestion occurs.

“However, to completely resolve traffic congestion on many routes, it is necessary to soon install a non-stop toll collection system at BOT toll stations. This is a major policy of the Government and an urgent requirement of society,” Deputy Minister Truong affirmed.

Non-stop toll collection system for vehicles traveling on National Highway 1 through Quang Binh province. (Photo: Viet Hung/Vietnam+)

Regarding this issue, Mr. Pham Quang Dung, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tasco Joint Stock Company - the investor implementing the project of automatic non-stop toll collection and vehicle load control nationwide - phase 1 applied to 3 toll stations on National Highway 1 and Ho Chi Minh Road through the Central Highlands, said that the Ministry of Transport has selected Tasco as the investor to implement the project and Tasco has also quickly completed the procedures to implement the project in order to promptly provide automatic non-stop toll collection service to people at the earliest time.

“However, up to now, the most important condition for the project to reach the milestone as set by the Ministry of Transport is not how Tasco does it, but the cooperation and consensus of BOT contractors for the project through signing the Contract appendix with the Ministry of Transport (the appendix adjusts manual toll collection to automatic technology collection) and the Contract for providing automatic toll collection services with Tasco,” Mr. Dung explained.

According to the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tasco, in order for the project to reach the finish line, the Ministry of Transport needs to sign the project contract with Tasco this March and the BOT investors need to quickly sign the Contract Addendum with the Ministry of Transport as well as the Contract for providing automatic toll collection services with Tasco must be completed in April 2016. This is also the most difficult issue at the moment for the project to ensure progress as required by the Ministry.

Directing at the meeting, Deputy Minister Truong said that currently, only 10 BOT investors have signed with Tasco. Today, all 18 remaining units must sign the final contract to have a legal basis to deploy and carry out the next steps.

“Any unit that does not do it, the Ministry will stop collecting tolls next week. Before March 15, all contracts must be signed so that implementation can begin. It is impossible to just have a meeting and then go home without doing anything. Once an agreement is reached, it must be implemented. Wherever there are intermediate toll stations ready to transition from one stop to automatic, the program must be installed immediately,” Deputy Minister Truong affirmed.

Transparency, monitoring and post-audit of toll collection

At the meeting, representatives of BOT investors all agreed with the implementation of the ETC system when revenue management is technologized quickly, accurately, transparently and ensures against loss, but also expressed concerns about the connection between ETC systems because there are many providers of this system.

According to the representative of Phuoc Tuong-Phu Gia BOT Joint Stock Company (the unit that built Phuoc Tuong-Phu Gia tunnel on National Highway 1A, Thua Thien Hue), the unit's account is registered with Viet A Bank, while the toll collection service of the ETC system belongs to Tasco and BIDV Bank. So, how will the toll collection amount be transferred back to the BOT investor?

Responding directly, Mr. Vu Quang Lam, General Director of VETC Joint Stock Company (Tasco) - the investor and operator of the automatic toll collection system (ETC) said that the toll fee will "flow straight" to BIDV Bank, then be transferred to the account of the State Bank of Vietnam and will be distributed to the bank account that the investor signed on the same day.

The non-stop toll collection system will help drivers avoid having to stop to pay. (Source: VNA)

In addition, the representative of the State Bank affirmed that in the contract, the BOT investors clearly stated the account number at which bank and on the State Bank system, the money of that toll station will be identified and committed to transferring money to the investor's account on the same day, before the State Bank's closing time.

Referring to the post-inspection work of the State management unit, how it will be carried out if there is "collusion" to falsify the toll collection statistics, leading to long collection time between the investor and the toll collection unit, the leader of Tasco Company acknowledged that the automatic non-stop toll collection system is performed completely automatically by modern machinery and equipment in the world with the most advanced technology today, bringing high accuracy.

All data and toll collection information are stored permanently, images of vehicles passing through the station are also stored for at least 5 years and panoramic video of the automatic toll station is stored for at least one year. In addition, data extraction and reporting to the Ministry of Transport will be done periodically every month/quarter.

In addition, to ensure transparency and accuracy, the system investor and operator will provide State management agencies, the Ministry of Transport, the General Department of Roads, the Ministry of Public Security... with an online connection portal for the purpose of monitoring all toll stations and toll collection data anytime, anywhere.

“With the above operating mechanism, the State agency can completely audit during and after the toll collection process at any time. At the same time, the audit of all toll collection data of each station performed by Tasco will be carried out by an independent auditing agency every year, ensuring that the data is always accurate, transparent and public,” affirmed the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tasco.

Regarding the fact that some other units are also participating in the implementation of the non-stop automatic toll collection system and the connection issue between toll stations that is of interest to BOT investors, Tasco expressed its opinion that if there are other units also participating in the implementation of the automatic toll collection system, Tasco is ready to cooperate, share and negotiate to ensure the ultimate goal of providing an automatic toll collection service that satisfies customers and ensures the interests of investors./.

According to VIETNAM+