On July 1st, 5,000 volunteers will begin a trial run of OReGO, the Oregon Department of Transportation’s pilot program that would charge hybrid and electric vehicle owners 1.5 cents per mile to use the road.
Sane ITF, which has been a part of toll projects globally, and IMS DriveSync, a telematics system which has been used by government and insurance fleets, have a contract with the ODT to provide reporting. The volunteer drivers will have several secure choices for how they report their mileage, and they will receive bill credit to offset fuel tax.
Volunteers using a GPS tracking system to count mileage will not be charged when driving out of state. If they choose the option without the tracking system, they will be charged for all driving regardless if they are in-state or not. However, they can opt to pay a higher flat rate and forgo mileage tracking all together.
Oregon is the first state in the U.S. to test a road charge system to help bolster transportation funding. Oregon has also made the charging infrastructure available for other states and Canada as well.