Puerto Rico ET restarted

Puerto Rico’s big toll system upgrade appears about to start moving again. There’s talk of restarting negotiations with the preferred prime TransCore. For more than six months the project has appeared to be dead in the water. The new administration of Governor Maria Siva Calderes elected last November has been heavily embroiled in controversy and doubts over Tren Urbano, San Juan’s first subway line, that it wouldn’t move on any other transport projects. TransCore was named last fall as the preferred contractor for the toll system upgrade, but the PR Highway and Transp Authority (PRHTA) first delayed any further action because of the impending election. Then after the election it had trouble getting the new government’s authority to negotiate a contract.

The new administration asked legitimate questions as to the scope of the project, whether it was fully needed. The PR toll system upgrade is large – about $175m which would cover completely new equipment and systems for about 220 toll lanes on all four major tollroads and one toll bridge that handle over 500k transactions per day, plus five years of operations and maintenance. The present toll system has problems handling not only the growing volume of traffic, but auditing.

The PRHTA looked into a trimmed-down or phased-in toll system upgrade, but the savings in cost were relatively small and the risks through operating incompatible or incomplete systems seemed high. So the decision seems to be to move forward with the complete system upgrade that was in the works. TransCore, not surprisingly, has agreed to extend the time for which its offer is valid. Two other major contenders, Ascom and SICE, are challenging the procurement process, and may take PRHTA to court over it. Another local tollster Dragados which operates the airport bridge is already suing the state over the shelving of the controversial PR-66 tollroad concession.