Felixstowe giant Maritime Transport will become the first company to trial the M6 toll road’s new Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR)-based charging system.
Julie Davies from Midland Expressway with Craig Bickley from Maritime Transport and Sarah Gourlay from Midland Expressway with the first of the Maritime fleet to have number plates registered with M6 Toll
The introduction of ANPR cameras by road owner Midland Expressway are part of its plan to transform the existing tolling infrastructure and drive growth on the motorway.
Maritime’s trucks will be the first vehicles to pay for their journeys via a centralised user system and following the trial, other logistics operators will join the project over the next few months.
The cameras identify license plate data and remove the need for card payments at toll plazas, meaning customers can manage all transactions via the M6 toll website.
Paul Heyhoe, Maritime fleet director, said: “We are delighted to be the first business to trial the new ANPR based M6 tolling system.
“The M6 toll already provides an invaluable route through the Midlands by avoiding congestion on local routes and the addition of this new technology will help to further enhance that journey experience.
“For our drivers, it will provide a hassle-free experience end to end on the M6toll, with no stopping at the plazas so further efficiencies delivered during their journeys.”
Julie Davies, commercial director at Midland Expressway Ltd said: “We welcome Maritime as our first customer to experience the new transformational tolling system.
“The M6 toll has a commitment to ensuring the road remains the most reliable, efficient and cost-effective choice for HGV and commercial fleet operators, and this pilot project is another key part of that ongoing strategic approach.”
Author: Chris Tindall, MotorTransport
Thomas Fanning
( Tuesday, April 13, 2021 - 20:17 )
I wish them well with it thought about this in my time over 14 years as the CEO that built and operated it .We fell foul of the Information Commissioner’s view who felt this was not appropriate as we tried to piggy back on the police scheme and access the users via the DVLA.
Wish them well with it but I don’t really think this is a big deal in attracting more traffic in any event the current owners don’t show any transparency in providing detail on their traffic figures at all, in my time we were quite open about it .
Traffic levels must have taken a COVID hit because we in the infrastructure business know that numbers are directly correlated to GDP thats taken a hit. So I suspect their toll increases are a direct reflection on trying to keep the cash flowing despite lower traffic but the toll levels are exorbitant and I thought I was pushing it hard in my tenure .
I wish them well it will be a struggle