Georgia 400 To Upgrade Cruise Card RFID Toll Collection Technology to TransCore's eGo Tags; Technology Eases Migration from Aging Battery-powered Tags to Battery-less Tags

Business Wire, Oct 20, 2004

HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Georgia's State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA), which operates the GA 400 toll road in Atlanta, will be the first toll facility within the continental United States to upgrade their radio frequency identification (RFID) toll collection technology to TransCore's paper-thin eGo(R) tags, a lower-cost, battery-less windshield sticker tag. Almost a million eGo tags are already deployed in transportation applications, including toll roads in Puerto Rico and Brazil. The contract includes 100,000 eGo tags, 18 multi-protocol readers, along with installation services on the 18-lane toll road. Product will ship in the first quarter of 2005 and the system will be operational by mid-summer 2005.

Many of the electronic toll collection systems in the United States today have been in use for more than a decade with millions of the battery-based tags approaching the end of their battery's life, requiring broad-scale replacement and specialized methods of disposal. By choosing to adopt the battery-less eGo sticker tag technology, the SRTA will avoid the problems associated with expensive tag replacement programs required as aging battery-powered tag populations expire. The SRTA benefits from the cost savings, which is enough to allow SRTA to upgrade their entire base of roadside readers to TransCore's next generation product line. These new readers are multi-protocol, which means that they read both existing and new tags and allow for the gradual phasing-out of the existing tag technology while phasing in the use of eGo tags. This approach eases the transition for GA 400 customers and provides a lightweight and easier to adhere tag. The approach also reduces STRA's future operating costs by eliminating a frustrating and labor-intensive tag recall, minimizing storage requirements and reducing refurbishment and shipping costs.

TransCore's strong intellectual property portfolio and track record of successful research and development initiatives has enabled the company to continue to design and develop a diversified portfolio of product and application patents. TransCore's RFID tags and readers are differentiated from other products in the market by their ability to monitor accurately vehicles moving at high rates of speed. As a result, TransCore's technologies may be utilized for advanced applications, such as open road tolling, which is tolling at highway speeds without toll plazas or an all electronic highway.

"The eGo product line exemplifies our research and development strength and ability to support our customers with a smooth transition as they upgrade their technology and expand applications for electronic commerce," said TransCore's president and CEO John Worthington.

TransCore is the only provider to offer a full suite of transportation-oriented tag products, including the proprietary eGo tags, and was the first to develop and commercialize RFID-based transportation applications, such as electronic toll collection. The eGo product is distinctive because it is the first single chip passive tag that has been fully qualified to meet rigorous performance demands for toll collection. Also, the eGo tag is offered at a price point that fuels widespread adoption, opening the door to new business models for open road tolling, electronic vehicle registration and mobile commerce that were previously uneconomic. Likewise, eGo tags are expected to speed the expansion of motorists' use of electronic toll collection, penetrating the population of toll road users who currently do not use RFID tags to pay for tolls.

About the eGo Windshield Sticker Tag and 3110A Series Readers

The eGo windshield sticker tag is a 915 MHz radio frequency (RF)-programmable, beam-powered transponder. The eGo tag offers an extended read range of up to 31.5 feet (9.6 meters) and 1024-bit read/write memory at a fraction of the cost of older, less flexible transportation-based RFID technology. The tag provides the capability to read, write, rewrite, or permanently lock individual bytes. The tag protocol is compliant with the ANS NCITS 256-2001 standard. Optional features include custom external laser etching, custom programming and security options such as disabling upon removal.

The eGo 3110A reader is a high-speed, multi-protocol 915 MHz RFID reader system and is ideal for multilane installations that require the ability to read two tag protocols and provide a migration path from an existing tag protocol. The eGo 3110A reader is capable of operating in any two of the three following protocols in a given installation: eGo (read-only), American Trucking Associations (ATA) (read-only), and California Title 21 or TransCore's Amtech(R) IT2200 (read-only).

About SRTA

The State Road and Tollway Authority is the transportation infrastructure financing arm of the State of Georgia and is committed to efficiently financing, managing and delivering land transportation choices for the State of Georgia. The 18 lane Georgia 400 extension, completed in 1993 handles approximately 120,000 vehicles per day. Approximately 38 percent of all vehicles traveling along the GA 400 extension use the Cruise Card RFID electronic toll collection technology.