LFC , The Revival

Its been about a month since Kenny Dalglish had taken over the reigns as the Caretaker Manager of Liverpool FC after the dismissal of the Roy Hodgson era. Personally, i was hoping for a bit more from the former Fulham manager who came into the hot seat after being named Manager of year for the 2009/2010 season. Continue reading »

Gantry system to be tested

Good news!! Very soon you wont need to slow down then your approaching your toll booths. The current system allows you to pay by cash,touch”n go or smart tag. Even with the smart tag you need to slow down to a certain speed to ensure the readers detect the smart tag and the barrier opens up.

The brand newtoll gantry system will undergo testing at the Lebuhraya Damansara Puchong’s Sungai Penchala Toll Plaza from November 2008 onwards.

Highway Authority director-general Datuk Mohamad Razali Othman says the new toll gantry system is more efficient compared to the existing infrared-based SmartTag system as there are no boom gates that force motorists to slow down.

The new microwave-based onboard-unit that is claimed to be able to detect motorists passing through the toll gantry even at speeds of up to 180km/h. There is one big big problem that is brewing, since there are no boom gates, motorists without the SmartTag system or the new microwave-based unit can just drive through without paying. Datuk Mohamad Razali says they are still figuring out how to go after such cases. Oh no, how do you solve this problem. Now Datuk…lets take a peak across the cosway and lets see what our friendly neighbours are doing to resolve that problem.

Ugly looking device that ALL vehicles in Singapore have

Have you seen one of these on a Singapore car,bike,taxi,trucks and any vehicle on wheels?? In Singapore they call it a ERP Unit(Electronic Road Pricing). This unit will enable the users to drive by their versions of toll booths without taking up the space and saving on manpower collecting money from the users.

"Singaporean Version of a Toll Booth"

This is how their “toll booths” look like, vehicles using the areas simply need to place their Cash Cards into the units.When they drive by these “tol booths” the unit automatically deducts the cost off the card. You do not need to slow down or stop to pay for using the road. Traffic jams at toll booths will surely be a thing of the past, don’t you think so?

Ok now lets ponder about the hard question that the authorities have. How do you enforce it to ensure people don’t simply drive by without having any money to be deducted?! I spoke to my 13 year old brother who gave me this idea…

- Doesn’t our my cards(identification cards) have touch n go?

- Don’t you have to place your touch n go into your smart tag to actually use it?

- Isn’t your my card unique to a individual?

Do the math !

Now..think of the kind of savings that you can have if this system is implemented properly

1) Cost of maintaining the toll booths

2) Cost of the manpower hired to collect the money

3) The electricity cost consumer by the air conditioning for the each toll booths

4) The fuel cost when you get stuck at a jam when you reach the tol booth

5) The security guard/cctv monitoring the booths(if any) cost

6) No risk of human error as human enforcement is not required

These are just a few of the many which I’m sure the real experts can come up with. Come on guys! If your not as creative, there is absolutely nothing wrong in learning from those who know how its done!