5.0 Toll Collection Equipment Technology

5.3.4 Recommended Guidelines

Patron Toll Display Design Issues

• For manual lanes, the patron toll display can be attached to the side of the tollbooth if adequate horizontal clearance is available to prevent overhang into the travel lane. Alternatively, the PTD can be mounted to the top of a pedestal that is installed on the toll island very close to the toll booth while maintaining adequate horizontal clearance with the front face of the toll island or raised barrier and not blocking attendant access ways.
• For ACM lanes, the PTD or patron fare display (PFD) is commonly an integral part of the ACM cabinet that is installed above the basket or hopper. However, some agencies use a standalone PFD or PTD, either in addition to or in lieu of one built into the ACM. The presence of an ETC capability in the lane supports the need for a display providing a better viewing angle for ETC users who normally bypass the ACM while traveling through the lane, subject to the status of the traffic devices controlling flow. The standalone PFD must be installed in a location that is easily seen after entering the ETC read zone so that the user is prepared to stop at the ACM if a message such as “deposit $ X.XX” is displayed instead of “Fare Paid. For ATIM lanes, since an alpha-only sign is needed, a blankout sign capable of one or two alpha-only messages, such as “Take Ticket” and “Out of Service” (in the case of two equal height ATIMS), is better suited to meeting the particular needs of this lane type.
• For dedicated lanes, the ITS alone can provide ETC account status using green and yellow, or some other easily recognizable lens color for the signal heads. Therefore, since a valid ETC transaction or a violation are the only transactions possible, neither of which require any user involvement when traveling through the lane, a PTD in these lanes is not warranted. This reduces the agency’s capital and system maintenance costs and equipment clutter that can confuse users.
• The height of the PTD must be selected to assure the sign can be seen by all vehicle traffic using a particular toll plaza lane type.

Patron Toll Display Guideline Development:

• The dimensions of the PTD must be consistent with the messages intended to be displayed and result in a size that is: 1) consistent in scale and form of other toll lane equipment such as the ITS; 2) be installed at an angle that is clearly visible to approaching passenger car and truck traffic; 3) provide a minimum 12 inch horizontal clearance setback from the toll island curb or face of raised barrier; and 4) provide the most economical solution relative to capital and maintenance costs. Since the PTD in manual lanes is commonly mounted to the side of the tollbooth, installing the PTD at an angle is usually not done (see Exhibit 5-4). The size of the characters used in the message tend vary within a small range of 3 inches high, which has proven to be a legible size from the distances the display is expected to be read by the user.
• In manual/attended lanes, the location of the PTD must be selected as close to the tollbooth as the size and any toll island access-ways permit to assure visibility to toll-paying passenger car and truck traffic. The location of the PTD is constrained by the physical features of the toll island, such as the size of tollbooth and columns supporting the canopy as well as the distance to the ITS, which should always be located downstream of the PTD. In automatic lanes, the PTD should be located just downstream and within three (3) to eight (8) feet of the ACM, without blocking an existing or planned accessway.
• In manual collection lanes, the height of the PTD needs to be selected so that it can be seen by all vehicles classes. The optimum viewing height should be set for the predominant vehicle class, which is a two-axle passenger car. However, consideration must be given to the extent to which passenger cars are the primary users of the ETC dedicated and express lanes (if any) and thereby less likely to use a manual collection lane. As a result, the PTD height should be optimized for view by drivers of SUVs and light trucks, resulting in more equal, albeit opposite, viewing angles for both truck and passenger car drivers. Given ETC dedicated and express lanes are expected to expand over time, the higher viewing height of the PTD is warranted even if the initial truck volumes are low.

Patron Toll Display Guidelines

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