What will be done? Where? How? By whom? When?
The project must be described in sufficient detail for its benefits and costs to be estimated. The description may change during the course of the analysis if it is seen that a more extensive (or less extensive) project or a different way of doing it may be more cost-effective.
Sometimes the optimum timing for a project and its alternatives can only be established after costs and benefits have been estimated. At that stage the timing of an option can be tested through sensitivity analysis, using different dates, to reveal the impact of project timing on the outcome.
What will be done: An electronic toll collection (ETC) system will be installed. It will include in each lane a toll tag reader, sensors and software to detect any vehicle without a valid toll tag and to activate a camera to record the vehicle's license plate. A toll payment service center will be created to distribute toll tags, bill tag holders, and enforce violations.
Where: Between Vallejo and Crockett, California, in the existing toll lanes on the Carquinez Bridge over the San Francisco Bay.
How: All lanes will have readers. One lane will be open only to vehicles with toll tags and will not be staffed.
By whom: Caltrans, which operates the current toll system, will install and operate the electronic system and will contract with a private firm for the payment service center. Caltrans will provide the toll tags, and users must keep a minimum balance with the service center, paying either by check or automatically with a credit card.
When: The system will be operational in 1999.
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