The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) has announced the six winners of its 2019 Toll Excellence Awards that have all demonstrated outstanding work to ease traffic congestion, embrace new technologies, and improve highway safety and reliability.
Each year, the IBTTA presents the Toll Excellence Awards to highlight the very best projects, innovations and solutions from the international tolling industry, nominated from its membership in 23 countries on six continents worldwide. As the worldwide association for the owners and operators of toll facilities and the businesses that serve tolling, the IBTTA’s annual awards encourage the industry to share and celebrate new ideas and emerging practices in six categories: Administration and Finance; Customer Service and Marketing Outreach; Social Responsibility; Technology; Toll Operations, Engineering and Maintenance; and Private Sector Innovation. The awards will be presented during IBTTA’s 87th Annual Meeting and Exhibition that is taking place from September 15-17 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. During the award ceremony, one recipient will be honored with the President’s Award for Excellence, the association’s highest achievement.
This year’s recipients of the IBTTA’s Toll Excellence Awards are:
- Administration and Finance – Transurban North America for its innovative P3 (Public-Private Partnership) financing of the I-395 Virginia Express Lanes project to deliver 8 miles (12.8km) of dynamic, managed toll lanes;
- Customer Service and Marketing Outreach – Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority (THEA) for the communication planning, outreach and execution of its Selman West Extension Project to ensure community involvement in the scheme;
- Social Responsibility – Central Florida Expressway Authority (CFX), the Florida Department of Transportation’s (FDOT) District Five and Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise for their Wekiva Parkway (State Road 429) congestion relief scheme that helps to protect wildlife and other natural resources in and ecologically significant and environmentally sensitive area;
- Technology – Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission for its ‘Catch it Early, Act, Analyze and Review’ (CAAR) GIS-based web application that allows the agency to quickly detect, view, and evaluate affected areas and identify relevant emergency service providers for any given section of monitored roadway;
- Toll Operations, Engineering and Maintenance – Illinois Tollway for its new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system that is capable of handling the growth in revenue and toll transactions;
- Private Sector Innovation Award – Electronic Transaction Consultants (ETC) for design, development and implementation of the new Central United States Interoperability (CUSIOP) Hub for seven partner agencies.
“Each award winner has taken on a tough transportation challenge and worked with partners to find a practical solution,” said Patrick Jones, the IBTTA’s executive director and CEO. “We’re incredibly proud of the work they’ve done to represent our industry.”
David Machamer, chair of the Toll Excellence Awards Committee and assistant executive director for toll and PIKEPASS operations at the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority, added, “For nearly two decades, IBTTA has recognized toll agencies, authorities and businesses world-wide that seek out innovative solutions to deliver safer, more reliable mobility. We applaud our 2019 Toll Excellence Award winners for groundbreaking achievements that are already helping drivers reach their destinations, safely and on time.”
