Toll collection: alternative technologies.

Existing law requires the Department of Transportation, in cooperation with the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District and all known entities planning to implement a toll facility, to develop and adopt functional specifications and standards for an automatic vehicle identification system, as specified, and generally requires any automatic vehicle identification system purchased or installed after January 1, 1991, to comply with those specifications and standards. Existing federal law, pursuant to the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act, requires all toll facilities on federal-aid highways to implement technologies or business practices that provide for the interoperability of electronic toll collection programs no later than a specified date. This bill would authorize the Department of Transportation and local and regional transportation agencies with existing or planned toll facilities to conduct a pilot project that uses automated toll collection technologies as an alternative to the existing radio-frequency identification tolling technology, in order to identify opportunities to facilitate lower cost tolling infrastructure, lower related operating costs, and more rapid deployment of high-occupancy toll lane networks. The bill would allow the test of tolling technologies that may not meet the interoperability requirements in existing law. The bill would authorize pilot projects in that regard for a period of up to 4 years. The bill would require any vendor participating in a pilot project to cover all related costs incurred by the participating agency. The bill would require each participating agency to make a specified report within 4 years of commencement of the pilot project to the Governor and the Legislature.