Highway (illustrative)
Highway (illustrative)Israel news photo: Flash 90

A new “dynamic toll” system has been installed on the fast lane to Tel Aviv. The system, the first of its kind, links the toll price to demand and traffic.

The toll varies according to the time of day, with drivers paying a different fee during peak traffic hours than during less crowded hours. It also calculates demand and takes into account the time that drivers have lost waiting in traffic.

The result is a higher toll at times when more drivers are on the road, in order to reduce demand and thus decrease waiting time. The system was developed by Siemens AG.

The fast lane opened on Friday; its opening had been delayed in December.

Traffic was heavy on Friday despite the new lane, although almost 1,000 drivers took advantage of the lane. Experts speculated that many drivers avoided the lane due to the toll.