The Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry has started to study ways to make all tollgates on expressways only for use with the electronic toll collection (ETC) system. A panel of experts is said to be discussing the timing, procedures and measures to be taken.
Expressways are public infrastructure. Hopefully the process of making all tollgates equipped only with the ETC system will be promoted with meticulous cares so that no one will suffer disadvantages.
ETC is a system in which antennas in onboard devices and at tollgates communicate and expressway companies send data to credit card companies to charge the toll.
Full-scale operation of the system started in 2001. It has helped ease traffic jams by eliminating the need to stop at tollbooths and hand over cash. It also made it possible to offer flexible discounts depending on the time.
The percentage of ETC payments of all payments at tollgates has reached 93%, but there are still some cars that are not equipped with ETC devices. In order to make the operation of expressways more efficient, it is desirable to bring the rate to 100%.
If an ETC-only system is introduced and tollbooths for cash payments are abolished, expressway companies will be able to streamline their operations by cutting labor costs and other items. This should lead to reduced expressway toll fees and benefits that will reach users.
The move will be in keeping with the government's policy of promoting cashless payments. It is significant that big data can be collected and utilized. In addition to preventing traffic jams and traffic accidents, it is expected to create new businesses.
There were cases in which tollbooths were temporarily forced to shut down after tollbooth workers were infected with the novel coronavirus. The ministry also aims to reduce the risk of infection by eliminating cash payments and reducing contact between tollbooth workers and drivers.
It is important to make overtures to those who are still hesitant to use the service.
Their reasons for not starting to use the system must be thoroughly analyzed.
Those who do not have credit cards can use the service by using special ETC cards in which tolls are deducted from bank accounts, but to start using such cards still requires the payment of deposits and annual fees. The cost of installing onboard devices may also hinder the spread of ETC use.
It may be an idea for the government and other entities to provide subsidies. Mandatory installation of the onboard device in brand-new vehicles can also be an option.
Those who rarely use expressways apparently do not feel the need for ETC. The expansion of ETC for use in other payments such as drive-through shopping and parking is required.
Still, it is highly likely that some vehicles will remain unequipped with ETC devices. The ministry will study a method to later charge owners of such vehicles that pass through tollgates by reading their license plate numbers at the gates and determining the owners.
However, it is not possible for highway companies to directly obtain information on the owners of mini-vehicles and motorcycles. Coming up with ways to smoothly collect tolls must be discussed.
-- The original Japanese article appeared in The Yomiuri Shimbun on July 26, 2020.
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