Mapflow wins contract to assess new European tolling system

Irish company Mapflow has just been awarded a six-figure contract with the European Space Agency to assess the technical and commercial feasibility of installing a revolutionary new tolling system across Europe.

The proposed system would use satellite based tracking linked to a black box in every vehicle, with the owner of the vehicle remotely billed according to specific road use, time of the day and distance travelled.

Such a standardised Europe wide system will facilitate more flexible tolling, where road users are charged according to use. Additional benefits of such a system include the reduction of significant costs associated with physical tolling infrastructure and a reduction in congestion due to improved traffic flow.

Implementing such a project will be a massive undertaking, and will take some time to become a reality. In April of this year the European Commission published a proposal that all EU vehicles will pay road tolls electronically. The first phase (2004) will introduce electronic tolling into heavy goods vehicles. The second phase (2010) will see electronic tolling implemented for all vehicles.

The Insurance industry is also assessing the same satellite technology to permit drivers to pay for motor insurance on a "pay for use" basis. Norwich Union in the UK recently announced details of their plans for a pilot scheme where premiums will be based on distance travelled.