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Variable Tolls in France

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Variable Tolls in France International Symposium on Road Pricing Key Biscayne, Florida November 19-22, 2003 David LECOFFRE, Transportation Attach – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Variable Tolls in France


1
Variable Tolls in France
  • International Symposium on Road Pricing
  • Key Biscayne, Florida November 19-22, 2003
  • David LECOFFRE, Transportation Attaché
  • Embassy of France
  • Washington, D.C.

2
Overview
  • Toll Roads in France
  • Toll Rates in France
  • Variable Tolls in France
  • Case Studies of Variable Tolls
  • Conclusions

3
Toll Roads in FranceGeneral Information about
France
  • Area 550,000 sq. km
  • Population 60 million
  • 22 regions
  • 100 counties
  • 36,000 cities/local districts
  • Private cars 29 million
  • Comm. vehicles 5.5 million

4
Toll Roads in FranceFrench Road Network
  • National Highways
  • 6,500 miles (75 toll roads)
  • Traffic gt 30,000 vehicles per day (vpd)
  • Other National Roads
  • 20,000 miles
  • Traffic gt 10,000 vpd
  • County Roads
  • 200,000 miles
  • Traffic gt 1,000 vpd
  • Local Districts Roads
  • 300,000 miles
  • Traffic gt 100 vpd
  • France is in a process of shifting road
    ownership of a large part of the road network
    from national level to county level

5
Toll Roads in FranceHistory of French Toll Roads
  • 50 years of toll road concessions experience
  • 1955 Toll Act authorizing
  • creation of state owned toll road companies
  • right to levy tolls to finance the construction,
    maintenance and operation of highways
  • Profitable toll roads have subsidized non
    profitable
  • 5,000 miles toll roads constructed and now in
    operation in France

6
Toll Roads in FranceFrench Toll Roads Today
  • 5,000 miles of toll roads concessions
  • 4,500 miles operated by 6 mainly publicly owned
    companies (ASF, SAPRR, SANEF, ESCOTA, AREA, SAPN)
  • 500 miles operated by a private company
    (COFIROUTE)
  • 2 international tunnels operated by publicly
    owned companies (ATMB, SFTRF)

7
Toll Roads in FranceRole of the French Government
  • Perspectives of privatization France studies
    the possibility of selling more of its shares in
    publicly owned toll road companies
  • Main Agencies involved Road and Highway
    Administration (Dept. of Transportation) and
    Budget and Treasury Administrations (Dept. of
    Finance)
  • Role of the French Government evolves from
    Shareholder/Operator to Regulatory Authority
  • French Government has an important role in
    setting toll rates

8
Toll Rates in FranceGeneral Information
  • Average National Toll Rate (private cars)Eur
    0.07 / km
  • Annual increase (Feb 1st)
  • a little more than inflation
  • Rate varies from toll company to toll company (up
    to 30 variance)
  • Toll Rate evolution policy is determined by the
    French Govt. and the toll companies
  • in the concession contract (general framework)
  • In the details, every 5 years, in a sub-contract

9
Toll Rates in FranceDefinition of Toll
  • The legal definition of a toll is complex Fee
    for service, Tax, Price lots of jurisprudence on
    the issue
  • For a long time, tolls used to cover the cost of
    infrastructure financing (construction,
    maintenance, operation)
  • In the future, a vocation to use tolls for
  • traffic management
  • cover external costs (ex. environmental costs)
  • Several variable tolls experiences have been
    implemented in France in the last 10 years

10
Variable Tolls in France Definition of Variable
Tolls
  • Variable tolls modify toll rates according to
    parameters such as time of day, itinerary,
    environmental reasons, etc.
  • A broadly used Variable Tolls toll rates vary
    according to vehicle type (i.e. passenger cars,
    commercial vehicles)
  • Three other interesting categories of variable
    tolls
  • Time-variable tolls toll rates based on the
    time of day
  • Itinerary-variable tolls toll rate determined by
    route traveled (when two or more possible routes)
  • Environmental-variable tolls toll rates based on
    vehicle emissions levels

11
Variable Tolls in FranceFrench Government
Position on Variable Tolls
  • French Government has favorable view of variable
    tolls
  • Has taken a pragmatic approach
  • No specific and strict policy learning
    period, step by step
  • There are some general principles
  • Main legal principle Two users may pay two
    different toll rates if and only if they are in
     significant  different situations (legal
    jurisprudence)
  • No revenue increase a toll rate increase during
    a time of the day must be compensated by a
    decrease during another time
  • Clarity and Simplicity the user must easily
    understand the variable toll system implemented
  • Public interest ex. Variable toll fees may be
    used for road safety (tunnels)

12
Variable Tolls in FranceCase study 1 A1
Lille-Paris (SANEF)
  • First Time-variable toll, North of Paris, from
    1992, still in operation
  • Toll rates increased on Sunday evenings (weekend
    rush hour)
  • Toll Rate 25 during  red hours  430-830
    pm
  • Toll Rate 25 during  green hours 
    230-430pm and 830-1130 pm
  • Success 10 traffic transfer from red to green
    period, easing congestion

13
Variable Tolls in FranceCase study 2 A10-A11
(COFIROUTE)
  • Southeast of Paris
  • Connection A10-A11
  • March to November 1996
  • Sunday evenings
  • Assessment positive, 8 to 12 traffic transfer,
    easing congestion
  • Initial evaluation period has not been extended
    due to public concerns
  • Cofiroute evaluates the opportunity of starting
    again

14
Variable Tolls in FranceCase study 3 A14
(SAPN)
  • A14 Urban Toll Highway
  • Paris - 10 miles, open 1996
  • A13 free alternative but congested during rush
    hours
  • 1998 Implementation of Time-Variable Tolls
  • Toll Rates vary according to the time of the day.
    From 4 Euros to 6 Euros.
  • Objective no traffic jams
  • Toll subscription policy
  • Electronic Toll Collection System
  • Car pooling, public acceptance

15
Variable Tolls in FranceCase study 4 A1-A26
(SANEF SAPRR)
  • Itinerary-Variable tolls
  • Objective avoid traffic around Paris by using
    route A26-A5-A31 instead of route A1-A6
  • During Summer Holidays 93 and 94
  • Toll Rate 1.5 Euros on route A1-A6
  • Toll Rate 5 Euros on route A26-A5-A31
  • Success users now know the alternative route
  • Initial evaluation period not renewed because A
    31 now congested

16
Variable Tolls in FranceCase study 5 A5-A6
(SAPRR)
  • Itinerary-variable toll rate
  • Winter Holidays 1995 to 1997 (Paris to the Alps)
  • South of Paris, use A5 instead of A6
  • Success 20 more traffic used A5 instead of A6
  • Experiment not extended after opening of A19 in
    1997 for technical reasons

17
Variable Tolls in FranceCase study6Alpine
tunnels (ATMB-SFTRF)
  • Environment-Variable Toll Rates
  • Mountain regions the Alps are an
    environmentally sensitive area
  • Mont Blanc Tunnel 7 miles
  • Frejus Tunnel 8 miles
  • Variable Tolls applies to Commercial Vehicles
  • Euro Classification (according to vehicle
    emissions)
  • Commercial vehicles pay an additional fee (5 to
    10 ) to use tunnels for environmental and safety
    reasons
  • Transfer Freight on Rail
  • Acceptance of the infrastructure by local
    population

18
In conclusion
  • Long experience 50 years tolling, 10 years
    using variable tolls
  • Variable tolling in France a pragmatic
    approach, no specific public policy at this time,
    French Government sets general principles as it
    goes along
  • Evolution of the concept of tolls from a
    financing purpose (cover infrastructure cost) to
    a broader purpose (traffic management cover
    external costs)
  • France--with its European partners--is in the
    process of forging new public policy by
    redefining tolls and determining to what extent
    variable tolls should be used.

19
THANK YOU !
  • Contacts
  • David LECOFFRE, Transportation Infrastructure
    Attaché
  • Embassy of France
  • 4101 Reservoir Road, Washington, D.C. 20008
  • Tel (202) 944-6304
  • Email david.lecoffre_at_dree.org
  • Additional contacts (French Road and Highway
    Adm.)
  • Patrick Vieu, Toll Roads and Concessions
  • Email AR.DR_at_equipement.gouv.fr
  • Alain Fayard, Economic and European Affairs
  • Email CM-EE.DR_at_equipement.gouv.fr
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