The plans of the Government They do not have an execution date, but they are committed to the European Union: sooner or later, the State will implement the toll highways. And although the measure has remained in the air, because the economic context and the proximity of the elections encourage us to wait, some Administrations are already studying possible collection systems. The last striking essay is that of Gipuzkoa on the A-8.
The use of collection mechanisms on main roads, originally scheduled for 2024, is mentioned in the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan sent to Brussels in June 2021, under which Spain will receive 140,000 million euros until 2026.
In it, reference is made to toll roads as one of the commitments with Europe: “It is necessary to develop a payment system by use of the high-capacity road network that allows cover costs maintenance”, says the text.
Since then, various possibilities have been raised, such as the charge per kilometer traveled or the payment of a annual rate Same for all vehicles. What the program does Gipuzkoa Living Lab, of the Gipuzkoa Provincial Council, is a variable rate that rewards less polluting cars
Highway A-8 toll
In a pilot test carried out at the exit of the semi-link to the AP-8 in Orio, the Gipuzkoan Administration has used a system that applies a particular rate depending on the level of emissions.
The key element is a remote sensor that calculates the real presence of gases, beyond assumptions theoretical or the environmental label of the Directorate General of Traffic (DGT).
The test was performed during the week of February 6. The measurement technology is equipped with a artificial vision camera and two optical sensors, one on each side of the road, which detect the vehicle and can measure in real time the wavelength of compounds such as carbon dioxide and other contaminants.
In particular, the system developed by the company Opus CSR detects all tailpipe emissions: carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxide, hydrocarbons, ammonia and PM particles.
From this measurement, the system classifies the vehicle for his level of actual emissions (low, medium or high). The system also measures the speed and vehicle acceleration, and its built-in artificial vision camera (via license plate) determines the age and type of vehicle.
All of the above parameters combine to give a fair and individualized toll rate”, explains the company in a statement.
fairer tolls
After three days trial and the measurement of more than 1,700 vehicles, The pilot program opens the possibility of applying a more accurate pricing, if it is decided that the criteria be polluting emissions.
In the words of the Provincial Deputy for Road Infrastructures, Aintzane Oiarbide, is about “one of the most interesting innovation projects of the department and pioneer at state and European level”.
The Gipuzkoa Provincial Council does not have an expected date for the implementation of this system, but does not want to delay it: “Very soon we will see this technology installed on our roads”, says Oiarbide.
