TransCore gets eGo sticker adopted for islandwide vehicle registration in Bermuda

TransCore's eGo sticker tags have gained their first adoption as standard vehicle registration devices. They are being issued to motorists as electronic vehicle registration (EVR) in the British Caribbean island of Bermuda – population 65k, area 53km2 (21 square miles), 47k motor vehicles.

A couple of million eGo sticker tags are now in use as toll transponders, mostly in Texas and Georgia, though they are under evaluation in Florida too. They are also used for access control and parking.

The ability to read and record a registration tag at full highway speed will help automate enforcement, allowing the police to locate vehicles without registration or insurance, including stolen vehicles. The sticker tags applied permanently to the windshield can be read from readers set on fixed gantries over the roadway, on poles or mobile readers in a police vehicle or mounted on a tripod at the roadside.

The director of the island state's transport control department (motor registry) is quoted in a press release: "EVR will expedite enforcement and ticketing of those not in compliance and recover lost fees more efficiently than our current manual system."

All vehicles in Bermuda are being fitted withTransCore's eGo RFID window sticker tags in place of visually read stickers as their registration becomes due. TransCore is installing the antennas, readers, and a host database system.

Each sticker tag gets a unique ID which is linked to records in the central database. A camera based violation processing system (VPS) will automatically generate citations. For now the system only covers private vehicles but it is planned to extend it to commercial vehicles.

Bermuda has restrictions on commercial vehicles operating in certain congested areas during peak hours and the system will be designed to assist in enforcement.

Hardly larger than a credit card they are stuck on the inside of the windshield of a car and incorporate read-writememory of 1024 bits and processor in a chip about 1mm square. The tag accommodates an antenna enabling it to respond to signals in the 902 to 928Mhz frequency. They do without battery power by using the energy of the incoming signal for processing and for their response signal sent back to the reader. The tags are designed so if tampered with they are become inoperable and provide an indication of the tampering to an inspecting cop.

The tags cost about $10 each.

If sticker tags were issued in the US for vehicle registration toll authorities would not have to issue transponders for electronic tolling.

They would also be a boon to law enforcement and to homeland security.

see www.transcore.com

TOLLROADSnews 2007-07-10