Toll fraud on the cards
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by Mary Williams • Fraudulent truck drivers could fool planned electronic motorway toll systems by buying car toll tags, which are cheaper than LGV tags.
As the Transport Select Committee reports on the Government's plans for tolls tomorrow (12 August), experts in the technology are warning that any implemented system operator would have to watch for fraudulent hauliers.
As trucks would have to pay more for their motorway mileage than cars, drivers could simply pay car rates and get away with it because the technology cannot distinguish between many vehicle types.
The Government's discussion paper Paying for Better Motorways suggested 4.5p a mile for truck tolls compared to 1.5p for cars.
The Government plans to use smart card technology in the form of a prepaid electronic tag, similar to those used for the Severn Bridge and Dartford Crossing, which would be stuck to a truck's windscreen and be read by a monitor on a motorway gantry.
Consultant Hugh Bell, who is work ing with S iemens P lessey Controls on a possible toll system for the UK, says that the complications of developing equipment which can tell the difference between more than two different classes of vehicle would be hard to overcome.