Toll Excellence Awards

In 2014, the state of Georgia integrated the State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA) and the George Regional Transportation Authority (GRTA) as a means to meet evolving demands for mobility through shared infrastructure, operations, and costs. SRTA receives the Customer Service & Marketing Outreach Award fo the Commuter Credits Program, an innovative initiative from the newly integrated agency. Commuter Credits are intended to help commuters think about their transportation in a more integrated way, reduce congestion along the heavily traveled I-85, and reduce SOV usage of Georgia’s Express Lanes during peak hours. The pilot program included three components:

Shift Commute – 243 existing Peach Pass users were offered weekly $3 toll credits for reducing their weekly peak period commutes from 4+ trips to 3 or fewer; Start a Carpool – SRTA attracted carpools to the express lanes by offering daily $3 toll credits to carpools with at least one Peach Pass user; Ride Transit – SRTA offered Peach Pass users daily $2 toll credits for taking the GRTA Xpress bus routes during peak periods.

Over the course of the pilot program 210 commuters took 4,500 trips using Ride Transit. Through Shift Commute, drivers moved almost 500 trips to off-peak periods or to another mode of transit. A vast majority of users said they found both programs easy to understand and would likely continue to use them in the future. SRTA plans to continue Ride Transit and Shift Commute on a permanent basis beginning in 2018.

Commuter Credits’ positive effects and tremendous user feedback demonstrate SRTA’s exemplary commitment to community outreach and engagement. The Community Credits Program has garnered global recognition for successfully highlighting the first steps agencies can take to serve users’ increasing demands for efficiency through a unified transportation system.

Texting and driving has quickly become one of America’s leading causes of roadway accidents, injuries, and fatalities. At any given moment roughly 660,000 drivers are using cell phones while operating their car. North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) receives the Social Responsibility Award for its campaign to spread the dangers of driving “intexticated” as part of the nationwide Red Thumbs Movement.

Red Thumbs is an old-school solution to a 21st century problem. The movement aims to educate drivers about the dangers of texting and driving, and encourages them to mark a small portion of their thumbs red as a reminder to put down their phones behind the wheel. As part of the campaign NTTA distributed 95,000 red thumb straps emblazoned with the NTTA logo and the phrase “W8 2 TXT”.

The creative efforts of NTTA resulted in extensive regional coverage of the program through traditional media outlets, social media engagement, and nearly two dozen community partners including municipalities, other transportation agencies, and various local businesses. The agency distributed video shorts over social media and changed electronic signs along roadways to alert drivers to the campaign. Plano Presbyterian Hospital invited NTTA to offer educational courses on safety to local residents, businesses, government officials, police officers, and teenage drivers to help make the roads of North Texas as safe as they can be.

Because Texas is one of four states without a statewide ban on texting and driving, the campaign was critical to ensuring the safety of Texas roads. The result was a fun and memorable movement benefiting NTTA and their community partners while, most importantly, saving lives and making Texas a safer place to drive.

The Road & Transport Authority (RTA) of Dubai receives the Toll Operations, Engineering and Maintenance Award for “Salik Toll System Expansion,” which recognizes RTA’s effort to revolutionize their Smart Salik app and online self-service system.

Project goals included: upgrading the Interactive Voice Response phone system – alleviating stress on the call center; revamping the website and Smart Salik app interface; a recharge by mobile and plate feature, thereby removing the frustration of forgotten PINs; a user portal with real time road and account information including pending and unpaid tolls; better integration across platforms and with smart device features such as fingerprint login on the app, back-end stability improvements, and a marketing campaign to educate customers on the changes.

Perhaps most impressive is RTA’s commitment to flexibility both now and in the future. Accounts can be recharged with cash at over 9,000 locations across Dubai, including at ATMs and through vouchers redeemed via SMS, the Smart Salik app, and the website. The redesigned back-end of the Salik network allows for advanced data analysis of user trends so RTA can stay ahead of the curve and remain proactive in meeting the needs of customers for years to come.

Results of the redesigned system are excellent across the board. Operational costs have fallen, call center calls have decreased 30%. Calls to retrieve forgotten PINs have almost been halved. Self-service transactions exceed 90 percent, well beyond the 80 percent government goal. Mobile adoption exceeds the 25 percent goal. In line with the Dubai Government’s Happiness strategy – to make Dubai the happiest city on earth –  the system’s happiness rating has risen from 73.2% to 93.2% following the launch of the renovated app and website.