Indiana Toll Road’s Intelligent Transportation System Improves Public Safety, Opens Broadband Expansion Opportunities Across Northern Indiana

The truck parking system will connect and monitor a dozen truck parking sites and dynamic message signs to provide truckers with real-time information on available truck parking spaces across the Toll Road corridor

 ITR Concession Company LLC (ITRCC), manager of the Indiana Toll Road, and eX² Technology, LLC, a single-source solution for those seeking to build, scale, or future proof their communications infrastructure, announced the completion of a fiber optic communications system as part of ITRCC’s Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) expansion project along the 157-mile Indiana Toll Road.

The $34M-project kicked off in March 2019 with the design and installation of conduit and fiber optic cable that completes an ITS network spanning Northern Indiana from the Illinois to the Ohio state lines. Numerous ITS devices were also deployed along the Toll Road providing dramatic safety improvements for the millions of people who travel the Toll Road annually. In 2020 alone, ITRCC’s ITS resulted in a 79% decrease in secondary crashes while providing advanced information to travelers regarding upcoming roadway conditions.

“The benefits of the fiber communications network extend far beyond safety,” said Nic Barr, CEO, ITR Concession Company. “The Toll Road corridor connects to more than 124 million people and provides a wealth of opportunity to foster, support and propel local communities across Northern Indiana.”

ITRCC’s communications infrastructure was built with additional conduit and fiber optic cable capacity to serve as a backbone for future community broadband expansion initiatives in northern Indiana and beyond. eX² Technology, ITRCC’s exclusive commercialization partner, is currently marketing the conduit and dark fiber on a competitively neutral lease basis. Funds that are generated by the commercialization program are put back into the Toll Road for continued roadway safety and customer improvements.

“It is with great excitement that we announce the completion of the ITR network,” said Jay Jorgensen, Chief Operating Officer, eX² Technology. “The fiber-rich network not only catapults the safety of those traveling along the Toll Road, but establishes a tri-state, open access corridor that gives surrounding communities and anchor institutions abundant broadband connection opportunities.”

In August 2020, ITRCC granted early access to its fiber network to provide Indiana’s Portage Township Schools District with the necessary bandwidth and network capacity to support a virtual learning environment for its 7,000 students amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We understand the significance of bringing broadband to these underserved markets and minimizing the digital divide,” said Jorgensen. “The pandemic has only heightened the need for this much-needed critical infrastructure.”

Additionally, eX² Technology is in the process of designing, deploying, and integrating a truck parking information management system with an estimated November 2021 completion date. The truck parking system will connect and monitor a dozen truck parking sites and dynamic message signs to provide truckers with real-time information on available truck parking spaces across the Toll Road corridor.

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