TCA and CHP Continue Partnership to Enforce Tolls and Enhance Safety
The Agencies have extended a contract with the California Highway Patrol (CHP) for increased comprehensive patrolling of the 73, 133, 241 and 261 Toll Roads through 2023.
The Toll Roads are owned by the state of California, maintained by Caltrans and patrolled by CHP during their normal hours. In accordance with state law, TCA funds additional hours to enforce and deter toll violations and promote proper motorist conduct. CHP officers focus on safety as a prime directive bringing additional benefits to TCA’s partnership. The targeted patrolling performed by CHP under the terms of the contract is in addition to the hundreds of hours of enforcement already performed each month.
CHP has been providing increased comprehensive patrolling on The Toll Roads since 2000. The one-year extension will provide for up to 3,600 hours of additional enforcement performed by officers using overtime hours.
CHP’s presence serves as a deterrent for excessive speeders, ticketing motorists with no license plates or obstructed license plates, as well as mitigating unsafe lane changes at the 241/91 transition.
Newly Approved Liquidity Reserve Policy Provides Protection from Risk
The Transportation Corridor Agencies’ (TCA) Boards of Directors took another positive step in its successful financial stewardship efforts by approving a liquidity reserve policy that calls for the holding of a portion of unrestricted funds reserves to provide risk protection and protect the strong credit ratings that have been achieved.
The reserve provides additional support to meet debt service coverage requirements or debt payments if revenue is negatively impacted by economic events or extreme events – like a global pandemic. It also demonstrates strong liquidity to bondholders and Wall Street rating agencies that the Agencies are continuing their strong management in overseeing the use of its available cash.
The policy commits each Agency to holding a minimum amount, which is calculated as the next fiscal year’s annual debt service and operating expenses. The policy also commits to a higher target amount, which would be 10% of that Agency’s outstanding debt balance.
The liquidity reserve policy is part of the Boards’ adopted Strategic Plan and commitment to sound financial practices that support the Agencies’ credit ratings, enable the funding of capital programs with cash and make possible the early pay down of debt.
Printing and Mail House Firm Helps TCA Send 4.3 Million Correspondences Annually
A contract was approved selecting QuestMark Information Management Inc. to provide bulk printing and mailing services for The Toll Roads’ customer correspondences, invoices and notices of toll evasion.
A certified woman-owned business based in Houston, QuestMark was unanimously selected from three competitors through a competitive procurement process that began in November 2021. QuestMark’s unanimous selection was based on its pricing, quality controls and 28-year history of printing, working with tolling agencies and meeting deadlines as well as demonstrated reliability in supporting TCA for nine years.
TCA mails approximately 4.3 million customer correspondences annually. The mailings are time sensitive and critical to TCA’s operations, so contracting with a qualified and experienced provider with the ability to mail items with a 24-hour turnaround was paramount in selecting a contractor.
