Toll-Taking Takes New Toll

While the proliferation of transponders has helped tens of thousands of drivers use the county’s toll roads more conveniently, it has also created a host of headaches.

From equipment glitches to a coming monthly fee, the small, windshield-mounted devices that debit drivers’ prepaid accounts when passing through toll plazas are creating grief for some seeking a smoother ride in traffic-choked Southern California.

“Electronic toll collection is a new industry,” said Lisa Telles, spokeswoman for the Transportation Corridor Agencies, which oversee the San Joaquin and Foothill/Eastern toll roads. “With any new industry, as you [grow], there may be glitches.”

For example, the agencies use the state Department of Motor Vehicles to track those who illegally use toll lanes intended for customers of prepaid accounts--called FasTrak. But since the agencies had not updated their software, it was unable to detect violators whose license plates began with the number 4. That created a backlog of 16,000 violations from June 1998 to March. Although fines were eventually waived, Telles said, the agencies learned from the experience.

“We weren’t aware of some of the changes. What it has created is more dialogue,” Telles said.

Drivers whose car windshields contain metal oxide are also prone to problems. The thin layer of metal--found on 1% to 4% of windshields--blocks not only the sun’s heat but also the radio signals that allow automatic toll collection.

After a successful European effort, industry groups are trying to persuade car manufacturers to leave a small rectangle of windshield glass free of the metal oxide. Meanwhile, the TCA plans to buy transponders that mount on license plates.

And customer service is a problem for those seeking to clear up violations. Drivers sometimes endure long delays on the telephone before encountering agency staffers who are often rude, toll officials acknowledged.

Agency board member Collene Campbell, a San Juan Capistrano councilwoman, reported such complaints to her colleagues last week. One caller waited 35 minutes before talking to a “rude and not apologetic” worker, she said. “That’s not acceptable. That’s not even close to acceptable.”

Delays have been caused by skyrocketing business. Since October, the number of automatic toll collections has doubled to 5 million per month, Telles said. More telephone operators will be hired to shorten the wait, and the complaints about rudeness are being investigated.

“That’s a problem. There’s no reason why anyone should be rude to any of our customers,” she said.

But some customers are taking a recent policy change--a coming monthly fee of $1 for transponders that don’t rack up at least $25 a month in tolls--as the biggest insult. Anticipation of this charge, which will start in the fall, is the customer’s stated cause of nearly a quarter of all account closings since May.

Telles said the 588 accounts known to have been closed because of the fee are minuscule compared with the agency’s roster of 141,000 accounts.

“Any time you have any type of fee charged, it does create concerns and questions among customers,” Telles said. “The reality is people don’t like [costs] to increase.”

Still, demand is growing. The TCA’s board of directors is expected to approve a $2.8-million contract today to buy 100,000 standard transponders, 10,000 recycled units, 4,000 externally mounted transponders and 5,000 yet-to-be-designed solar-powered prototypes.

Since the TCA started issuing transponders in 1993, the devices have evolved from videocassette-sized card readers to the smaller, sleeker units of today--thin plastic squares containing radios.

“This technology and the application of it will continue to improve over time,” said Neil D. Schuster, executive director of the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Assn. in Washington, D.C. “Really, in the last 10 years, the systems have come into place . . . that makes it all click.”

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Adjusting the Signal

The popularaity of FasTrak transponders has lead to a series of problems -- unresponsive transponders, dead batteries in the devices and high replacement costs. The Transportation Corridor Agencies is expected to approve a $2.8 million contract Thursday to purchase a variety of transponders that will be tested for effectiveness and durability.

Type of transponder: Standard, internal-mounted

Number of units: 100,000

Cost per unit: $23.44

*

Type of transponder: Remanufactured, internal-mounted

Number of units: 10,000

Cost per unit: $13.47

*

Type of transponder: Solar-powered, internal-mounted

Number of units: 5,000

Cost per unit: $32.33

*

Type of transponder: Standard, external-mounted

Number of units: 4,000

Cost per unit: $30.96

Getting Off the FasTrak

Nearly one in four customers closing their FasTrak accounts say they did so becaause of a $1 low-use monthly fee due to go into effect this fall.

Accounts Closed:

May - 237

June - 549

July - 1,346

TOTAL - 2132

*

Why Accounts Were Closed:

32% moved out of area

24% new monthly fee

20% no reason given

13% no longer use tag

10% Other*

* Includes: no longer use road, merged with another account, too expensive or prefer to pay cash.

Source: Transportation Corridor Agencies