IBM proposes national congestion charging system

A key plank of the government's flagship integrated transport policy could be under threat if it does not develop a single national technical platform for congestion charging and roll toll schemes, according to new research.

The research, commissioned by IBM and carried out by Mori, found general support among the UK public for congestion charging schemes such as the one in London.

But it warns this support could quickly disappear if disparate non-integrated local schemes are implemented, potentially causing confusion and delays for motorists.

With different systems and processes in place that are not interoperable, it is possible that drivers on some journeys passing through two or three major cities would have to use very different charging schemes, with inconvenient and multiple payment mechanisms, says the report.

There is obviously an element of IBM plugging its own architecture as the basis for this national platform in the report's findings but the research does highlight the importance of a single infrastructure to support the government's integrated transport policy.

John Dowson, partner in IBM Business Consulting Services, said in the report: "Currently, there is a danger of a chaotic, costly and inefficient development path being established towards congestion charging in the UK because of the local and thus inevitably fragmented approached being taken."

IBM is calling on the automotive and mobile telecoms industries along with satellite, camera, smart card, on-board unit and application software providers to get together and discuss the technical issues, as well as including other interest groups such as road haulage, driver and citizens' rights associations.

While the London congestion charging scheme, run by Capita, uses cameras and number plate recognition technology to enforce the £5 a day charge, IBM claims a more efficient and flexible model would use short-range communications systems to transmit signals to and from on-board GPS units in cars and roadside receivers. A scheme using this technology is due to be trialled in part of Leeds later this year.