Indra, a global technology and consulting company, has integrated a new feature into its toll back-office system to utilize blockchain technology for recording transactions. This enhancement is specifically implemented in their Mova Collect line of dynamic toll solutions. The primary objective of this development is to provide operators and concessionaires with a robust and dependable solution that can efficiently record operations, thereby enhancing data integrity, transparency, and traceability.
Both businesses aim to implement this technology to safeguard the numerous transactions that occur within a concessionaire, offering them increased security and reducing the risk of fraud. This initiative will contribute to establishing an intelligent and secure highway. Indra asserts that applying blockchain to the processes and transactions within toll back-office systems, such as transaction integrity, clearing between operators, payments to the central entity, financial auditing, and fraud control, can minimize conflicts among participants by resolving potential disagreements. Additionally, it protects against cyber-attacks and simplifies settlement and auditing tasks. Moreover, it can address issues that may arise in managing blocked users lists due to delays in sending license plate and vehicle type records associated with toll usage at a specific time. Indra emphasizes that the use of blockchain technology does not disrupt the normal operation of users, as they can continue using the same interfaces. Instead, it enables the identification of potential discrepancies in records for further investigation.
Indra‘s solution is specifically designed for electronic toll collection and situations where multiple concessionaires exist with interoperability between them. The development is being carried out on a Software-as-a-Service platform, which will facilitate the recording of toll transactions and associated settlement processes, thereby enhancing traceability. The solution utilizes Quorum, a decentralized blockchain business platform, within the Critical-Chains framework.
MULTIPLE USE CASES AND MULTIPLE STAKEHOLDERS
Indra is not only involved in the transportation use case, but also takes the lead in validating the framework in various sectors such as banking, insurance, financial institutions, and toll highways. In the toll industry, Indra has made significant advancements with its Mova Collect dynamic toll system, which incorporates deep learning and automatic detection of high-occupancy vehicles. This system has been successfully implemented in the USA, specifically on the I-66 Outside the Beltway highway, utilizing an advanced dynamic pricing system. Indra believes that this solution will enhance the safety, efficiency, and sustainability of the highway, as the system continuously learns and improves its performance based on the data collected.
Indra‘s involvement in this project is part of the European Critical-Chains R+D+I initiative, where they are leading the transport use case. To validate their solution, the company has partnered with ROADIS, a multinational company in the infrastructure sector, to implement the system on the Monterrey-Saltillo highway in Mexico. The Critical-Chains project, funded by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 Program, is coordinated by the University of Reading and involves 12 partners from eight countries. Among the project members are Guardtime, a technology company, Fraunhofer EMI, and Netas, a telecommunications firm.
