HÀ NỘI — Four more toll stations in the southern region will be equipped with electronic toll collection (ETC) systems in the next two months. 

Apart from the eight ETC stations that have begun operating in the northern, central and Central Highlands regions, an ETC system will be installed at a toll station in the southern province of Đồng Nai this month, the VOV online newspaper reported.

It will be the first ETC station in the southern region, said the VETC electronic toll collection company, which has been assigned the task of developing and launching the ETC systems.

In September, VETC will open three more ETC stations on Hà Nội Highway, Đại Hàn Highway and Phú Mỹ Bridge in HCM City.

Việt Nam loses VNĐ3.7 trillion (US$162.7 million) every year on paper ticket printing and traffic congestion at the manual toll collection (MTC) systems, the newspaper reported. This is based on the cost calculated at around 100 MTC stations nationwide, and paper ticket printing accounts for VNĐ100 billion ($4.4 million), or 2.7 per cent.

Hundreds of millions of đồng are also lost through wasted fuel due to traffic congestion and delayed goods transportation, considering the waiting time for vehicles at manual toll stations, not to mention the negative effects of gas emission to the environment and the risk of traffic accidents.

An ETC system operates exactly like a prepaid mobile network provider, said VETC director Vũ Quang Lâm. Every vehicle will be given an electronic tag (e-tag) similar to a mobile SIM card, with a series number similar to a mobile number, which can be topped up using common prepaid mobile services, he explained.

“Going through an ETC station will be like making a phone call. The system will automatically charge vehicles in accordance with the toll rate of the station,” Lâm said. “Investors under the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model will no longer have to organise a toll collection mechanism. We will do that for them.”

Through e-tag, the system will identify the vehicle and transmit its image and information to a data centre at high speed. Confirmation of the vehicle’s information and deduction of required amount from the account will be almost immediate, so the barrier will lift without the vehicle having to stop. Electronic devices will also be used to supervise the entire toll collection process.

VETC is collaborating with Việt Nam Register to install e-tags on motorised vehicles.

Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyễn Hồng Trường said that he wanted ETC systems to be installed at all toll stations nationwide by 2020. — VNS