The initiative will produce information that addresses the most critical issues which transportation agencies are likely to face now and in the future, such as:

- Multi-modal Coordination: What are the opportunities and potential benefits from regional and multi-modal collaboration? Can the existing and emerging payment approaches for individual systems and modes migrate to an overarching transportation EPS system?

- Impact On Congestion: How can the electronic payment systems in each mode support congestion management policies and strategies? How can integrated payments systems facilitate cross-modal congestion pricing strategies?

- Standards: How should transportation agencies use the various standards for payment systems being developed? What are the opportunities for standardization among different modes of transportation (e.g. can elements of the payment settlement process be standardized)? What coordination is needed with standards in other industries (e.g. financial, access control, ID, automobile registration)?

- External Partnerships: How will payment instruments and services offered by non-transportation organizations (e.g. financial institutions, transaction processors) meet the needs of the transportation industry over the long term? What are the potential benefits, challenges and actions needed to implement these partnerships successfully?

- Overall Strategies: What should the I-95 Corridor payment system strategy be? What will be the policy drivers for the future and how can electronic payment systems support them? How will EPS support and enable congestion management and revenue generation strategies? What are viable migration strategies from today’s payment systems to those of the future? Can multiple payment mechanisms co-exist?

Procurement Agency: Electronic Payment Services Track
Project Contact: William Thorp, EPS PTC Co-Chair; Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise

This project will provide an objective description of emerging payment system alternatives, and will explore opportunities for payment innovations and convergence in various modes of transportation in the I-95 Corridor.  The project will also provide an opportunity to begin to formulate convergence strategies from these emerging approaches to electronic payment systems that look ahead to the future.  A major focus of this study will be to examine ways to use advanced payment technologies which could provide the traveling public with a more coordinated approach to payment systems for all modes.

Conduct research to create an initial description of the current and emerging practices in electronic payment systems in the various transportation modes, as well as the approaches for coordination of payment systems across modes. Key challenges and issues related to regional payment system implementation and integration will be identified, and potential approaches to address these issues will be suggested. The research will focus on initiatives to use payment systems to reduce congestion, increase revenues and increase the convenience, effectiveness and efficiency of transportation services in the I-95 Corridor.

Having conducted interviews of key industry stakeholders as necessary to determine best practices, and having conducted a survey which was used to develop a baseline of real world use of electronic payment techniques, any multi-modal or regional coordination, etc., Volpe Center produced a White Paper entitled “Multi-modal EPS Best Practices and Convergence” wherein the following were included:

• Identify EPS approaches
• Identify issues and uncertainties (i.e. perceived gaps in technology, processes, business rules, etc.)
• Develop evaluation framework
• Evaluate approaches and recommend best practices
• Develop draft visions and recommendations for a full examination of long term approaches (both business and technical) to convergence

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Final Expenditures -- $75,000