Lockheed Martin Collects $24M

Lockheed Martin IMS won a $24 million contract to expand its existing electronic toll collection program throughout Maryland.

The Maryland program, named M-Tag, will expand to include additional toll facilities and serve a broader segment of drivers, said Lockheed Martin IMS of Washington Dec. 15.

IMS also will integrate M-Tag with a similar program, E-ZPass, which provides electronic toll services to drivers using bridges and tunnels in the New York and Philadelphia metropolitan areas. The integration will make it possible for drivers who belong to one electronic toll collection program to automatically participate in the other , said IMS.

Electronic toll systems allow a driver to establish a prepaid account and mount a transponder on the inside of a vehicle's windshield. The device is read automatically when the vehicle passes through specially equipped toll booths.

Work will begin on the program in January, said IMS. E-ZPass reciprocity and expanded M-Tag availability will be operational by Dec. 31, 2001.