HARRISBURG, Pa.--()--TransCore, a subsidiary of Roper Industries (NYSE: ROP), has been notified by Houston’s Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) that it has been selected as prime contractor to design, furnish, install, operate, and maintain a high occupancy toll and automated reversible gate operation system for 83 miles of reversible high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes. The total contract is valued at an estimated $81 million and is 80-percent federally funded. Final contract negotiations with the Authority are underway and are expected to be completed in November 2009. The first corridors will be operational by late 2010 and the entire system will be completed in two years. TransCore will provide operations and maintenance of the system for five years following the installation.
“We admire the innovation and leadership METRO continues to demonstrate through the implementation of the HOV Improvement Program – this project will expand the mobility options for the traveling public, improve overall corridor efficiency, and provide meaningful travel-time savings to customers”
The High Occupancy Vehicle Improvement Program will convert five existing HOV corridors throughout the Houston metropolitan area, including I-45 North and South, U.S. 290, and U.S. 59 North and South, to allow single-occupant vehicles access to the HOV lanes for a toll and the program will improve safety by providing an automated reversible gate operation (ARGO) system to control entry into the reversible roadway system. The conversion is expected to increase utilization of the HOV system by up to 50 percent and decrease congestion in the general purpose freeway lanes.
“We admire the innovation and leadership METRO continues to demonstrate through the implementation of the HOV Improvement Program – this project will expand the mobility options for the traveling public, improve overall corridor efficiency, and provide meaningful travel-time savings to customers,” commented John Simler, president of TransCore’s Intelligent Transportation Systems.
The HOV Improvement Program includes 156 lanes, a customer service center, and back-office systems, as well as an interface with the area’s multi-agency traffic management center, Houston TranStar. The system will be fully electronic and tolls will be calculated using variable pricing. The program will incorporate TransCore’s radio frequency identification (RFID) technology that is interoperable with all tolling agencies throughout the State of Texas.
TransCore has been a system integrator, operator, and a maintenance provider for some of Houston’s largest transportation initiatives over the past 20 years. TransCore’s experience with HOT lanes includes the nation’s first deployment on I-15 in San Diego, as well as Miami’s I-95 Express, Seattle’s SR 167, and the HOT lane project recently started on Utah’s I-15 in Salt Lake City.
METRO is an innovative regional transportation organization of dedicated employees committed to partnering with the public and private sectors to provide the safest, highest quality services and mobility solutions that exceed customers’ expectations while creating economic growth.
The Texas State Legislature authorized the creation of local transit authorities in 1973, and by 1978, Houston-area voters created the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO). The 1,285-square-mile METRO service area covers the City of Houston, major portions of unincorporated Harris County, and 14 municipalities collectively known as the Multi-Cities. METRO is a comprehensive transit system plan to help solve the Greater Houston region's traffic congestion and air quality problems.
Communities that are part of the METRO area include the cities of Houston, Bellaire, Bunker Hill Village, El Lago, Hedwig Village, Hilshire Village, Humble, Hunters Creek, Katy, Missouri City, Piney Point, Southside Place, Spring Valley, Taylor Lake Village and West University Place. Major portions of unincorporated Harris County are also included.
For more information visit, http://www.ridemetro.org/
With installations in 46 countries, more than 100 patents and pioneering applications of RFID, GPS and satellite communications technologies, TransCore's technical expertise is unparalleled in the markets it serves. TransCore's 70-year heritage spans the development of RFID transportation applications at Los Alamos National Labs to implementation of the nation's first electronic toll collection system. In 2009, Engineering News-Record (ENR) ranked TransCore No. 145 out of the Top 500 Design Firms. TransCore is a U.S. owned and operated company with products designed, engineered and manufactured by TransCore’s U.S.-based workforce.
TransCore’s extensive global experience with tolling systems includes more than 7,400 installed electronic toll collection lanes worldwide and 22 customer service centers. TransCore offers an extensive suite of enterprise software applications, business process outsourcing, system integration, and maintenance services to provide complete solutions, configurable to customers’ requirements. TransCore operates as a subsidiary of Roper Industries. For more information, visit www.transcore.com.
Roper Industries is a diversified growth company and is a component of the Fortune 1000, S&P MidCap 400 and the Russell 1000 Indexes. Roper provides engineered products and solutions for global niche markets, including water, energy, radio frequency and research/medical applications. Additional information about Roper Industries is available on the Company’s website at www.roperind.com.
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