Modeling Toll Pricing Strategies in Greater Toronto Area

Abstract

Highway 407 (a four- to six-lane freeway), in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) (with a population of 5 million) has been considered for many years as a relief for Highway 401, the busiest highway in North America. Highway 407 is being planned as a toll highway. Ideally, the driver of each car should have a transponder in the car to identify the vehicle for electronic toll billing purposes. The value of the toll (variable toll) would depend on the number of kilometers traveled on the highway. However, to attract some of the drivers who do not want their origins and destinations to be tracked, a fixed-toll option might be available. A study was developed to estimate the changes in the travel and the revenue of Highway 407 if a fixed-toll option were allowed simultaneously with a variable one. The GTA mathematical model, within the EMME/2 environment, was used. Although the available transportation planning packages were not originally designed for evaluating these kinds of toll strategies, it is possible to do the evaluation using several multiclass generalized cost assignment runs with feedback loops. The mathematical model and the evaluation process used are described. One of the results of the evaluation is the finding that allowing fixed-toll operation does not increase the number of users of Highway 407 (operating under a variable toll scheme) but will increase the revenues in a marginal way. Therefore, it is concluded that using only a variable toll rate would maximize the net revenue for the year under consideration.