- Washington State Requests Vendor Comments On Draft Roadway Toll Systems RFP
- Louisiana House Advances Bill To Put Trump's Name On Proposed Baton Rouge Bridge
- Highway Safety Improves Following Colorado's Strict Ban On Mobile Phone Use
- Briefer Still: Other Developments TRN Is Following
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Washington State Requests Vendor Comments On Draft Roadway Toll Systems RFP
The Washington State DOT (WSDOT) Toll Division has issued a “Draft Roadway Toll Systems (RTS) Modernization Programs RFP” for industry review. The draft RFP materials are posted as an RFI (number 2026-0331) on Washington’s Electronic Business Solution (WEBS) portal. Interested vendors are invited to submit feedback to the department no later than April 30, 2026. One-on-one meetings for additional clarification will be available to vendors that have provided written comments.
The final RFP, planned for release this summer, will procure two contracts:
- Contract A: ORT Roadway Toll Systems (including gantry based all electronic tolling for single point and Express Toll Lane (ETL) facilities), and
- Contract B: Side-Fire Roadway Toll Systems (including a proof of concept deployment for Side-Fire toll collection without any overhead equipment, and options for future facility implementations).
Vendors will have the option to respond to one or both contracts.
For information on registering for WEBS and accessing RFI and RFP documents, see the RFI notice. Questions about accessing the materials should be addressed to the WSDOT Procurement Coordinator at Tariq.Ohab@wsdot.wa.gov.
AET (All-Electronic Tolling) ETC Systems Express Lanes Procurement of Tolling Equipment & Services Washington State Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT)Louisiana House Advances Bill To Put Trump's Name On Proposed Baton Rouge Bridge
Last week, the Louisiana House passed HB 221 by a vote of 68-26 and sent it to the Senate. The measure would attach Donald Trump’s name to the Baton Rouge bridge and expressway approaches proposed under the state’s Mississippi River Bridge project (MRB South).
The bill’s sponsor, state representative and congressional candidate Michael Echols (R-14), believes honoring Trump could help obtain federal funding for the long-delayed project. “This isn’t just a bridge. This is a statement. A statement that Louisiana is done sitting in traffic. This project is $3 to $4 billion, and we’ve been talking about it for 30 years. All this is one small statement to get the attention of the people in Washington, D.C. that Louisiana is open for business,” Echols stated.
A floor amendment adopted before the bill’s final passage states that the naming will occur only “if and when the federal government provides a substantial amount of funding for construction of the bridge, but only if such funding is provided prior to noon on January 20, 2029,” the end of Trump’s final term.
This week, the state’s lieutenant governor, Billy Nungesser (R), told a radio interviewer he opposes the bill based on his belief that public infrastructure shouldn’t be named after a living public official. “There’s too much else to focus on than naming bridges and monuments about a living president, so I’m not in favor of it,” Nungesser said.
Sources: Shreveport Times, LouisianaFirstNews.com, Louisiana Radio Network
Capital Area Road and Bridge District (Louisiana) Company and Agency Financial Issues And Reports Louisiana Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD)Highway Safety Improves Following Colorado's Strict Ban On Mobile Phone Use
A new study reveals that Colorado’s strict ban on drivers’ manual use of mobile phones has improved highway safety in the year since its implementation.
Data collected through phone apps and sensors shows that distracted driving in the state declined by 4.7 percent between 2024 and 2025, and dropped 8.3 percent in the first month after a new prohibition on phone use took effect. In 2025, the Colorado State Patrol investigated nearly 3,800 crashes involving inattentive driving, a drop of almost 9 percent from the 2024 total. A 2025 year-on-year increase of 216 percent in state police citations for improper mobile phone use is evidence of the ban’s vigorous enforcement.
The study results from research conducted by Cambridge Mobile Telematics (CMT), a firm that compiles data on mobile phone use and employs artificial intelligence to analyze driving behavior and roadway risks. The firm estimates that the changes it discovered in Colorado drivers’ phone use helped prevent nearly 600 crashes, more than 400 injuries, and six fatalities.
Although Colorado lawmakers had previously prohibited texting while driving, they passed SB 24-065 (effective on January 1, 2025) to require complete hands-free phone use. The law prohibits motorists from holding or manually using a phone or other mobile device to engage in calls or for any other reason while driving or being stopped in traffic.
Sources: Colorado DOT news release, CMT news release, CDOT.gov subpage on hands-free law
Colorado Colorado Department of Transportation Highway-Tunnel-Bridge Safety (Includes COVID-19 Impacts) Mobile Navigation and Traffic Monitoring Apps Transportation and Infrastructure Research & DevelopmentBriefer Still: Other Developments TRN Is Following
USDOT Confirms Award Of $600 Million Grant To Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission For Bistate Delaware River Bridge Replacement Project (USDOT news release)
Pennsylvania Turnpike Expects 2.21 Million Travelers Over Long Easter Weekend (PA Turnpike news release)
Illinois Tollway Projects Easter Holiday Weekend Volume Of 8.8 Million Vehicles (Illinois Tollway news release)
Washington State Adopts Supplemental Transportation Budget, Adding $1.2 Billion To State’s Two-Year Spending Plan And Authorizing $1.3 Billion In New Bonding (Washington State Standard)
USDOT Takes Credit For Drop In National Traffic Fatality Rate (USDOT news release)
Minnesota Plans $1.5 Billion Of Highway And Bridge construction In 2026 (CBS News)
Fallen Illinois State Troopers Will Be Memorialized By Roadside Signs Placed On IDOT And Illinois Tollway Facilities (Illinois state Police news release)
Tolling Will Be Suspended Throughout Dominican Republic Tomorrow To Ease Holy Week Travel (DominicanToday.com)
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