Federal tracking of drivers

[Norm DePlume]

choice excerpt:                     Information compiled
                                              by the Border Patrol on
PAL users is confidential, and
                                              federal officials are
concerned about others possibly
                                              gaining access to it.





                                                This Is Traffic That
Doesn't Compute
                                                Drivers who use tollway
transponders and a Border
                                              Patrol shortcut lane
suddenly can't do both, because of
                                              an equipment change. A
solution is on the way.

                                              By H.G. REZA, Times Staff
Writer


                                                  A clash of technology
is forcing drivers to choose
                                              between electronic
transponders issued by tollway
                                              agencies for use on toll
roads and those issued by the
                                              Border Patrol for a
commuter lane at the immigration
                                              checkpoint near San
Clemente.
                                                   Both devices use the
same frequency. But they are
                                              incompatible because one
is used for collecting tolls
                                              and the other for hurrying
through a federal
                                              checkpoint. Drivers who
would normally be able to
                                              use both are being forced
to choose one.
                                                   All of which has some
commuters fuming.
                                                   "It's stupid. What's
the sense of issuing
                                              incompatible transponders
that can only be used on
                                              separate systems?" said
Charles DeMarco, an Orange
                                              County business owner.
DeMarco has a transponder
                                              issued by the
Transportation Corridor Agencies, which
                                              manage three local toll
roads, and until recently he
                                              could also use the
commuter lane at the San Clemente
                                              checkpoint.
                                                   Both agencies are
working on a solution, with a
                                              compatible system expected
to be up and running in a
                                              month.
                                                   The Border Patrol's
commuter lane--called PAL for
                                              Pre-Authorized Lane--was
opened in 1997 and used
                                              bar code stickers and
readers. On April 1, the Border
                                              Patrol switched to
transponders, presenting a problem
                                              for some drivers
authorized to use the lane, Agent
                                              Fernando Grijalva said.
                                                   He estimated that 35%
of the 1,500 vehicles
                                              authorized to use the PAL
also use transponders issued
                                              by the tollway agencies.
These vehicles were not given
                                              Border Patrol
transponders, he said.
                                                   TCA spokeswoman Lisa
Telles said that about
                                              300,000
transponders--called FasTrak--have been
                                              issued to toll road users.
FasTrak units can also be
                                              used on other roadways
throughout California where
                                              fees are collected
electronically.
                                                   FasTrak transponders
are issued when a prepaid
                                              account is established,
and fees are deducted
                                              electronically. Border
Patrol transponders are free,
                                              once an applicant passes a
criminal background check.
                                                   "The problem we have
is that FasTrak is a
                                              currency-based system.
Ours is free, and they are two
                                              different systems,"
Grijalva said. "PAL users have to
                                              undergo a security check
to make sure they don't have
                                              a criminal background. All
FasTrak users have to do is
                                              keep money in their
accounts."
                                                   Compounding the
problem: Information compiled
                                              by the Border Patrol on
PAL users is confidential, and
                                              federal officials are
concerned about others possibly
                                              gaining access to it.
                                                   Telles said the
compatible system being developed
                                              would enable PAL users to
sail along on local
                                              tollways if they open an
account, and FasTrak users
                                              who pass a background
check to use the faster
                                              commuter lane at the San
Clemente checkpoint.
                                                   "We are about to
enter into an agreement with the
                                              Border Patrol. FasTrak
users who also want to use the
                                              PAL lane will have to get
a new transponder from the
                                              Border Patrol," she said.
"If you already have a PAL
                                              transponder, we'll be able
to take that coding and
                                              integrate it into our
system to establish a FasTrak
                                              account for drivers who
want to use our roads."
                                                   Vehicles with a PAL
transponder but not a FasTrak
                                              account will be cited if
they use the toll roads without
                                              paying, Telles said.
Conversely, Grijalva said vehicles
                                              with FasTrak transponders
that have not received PAL
                                              clearance will be stopped
and possibly searched.
                                                   Drivers like DeMarco
say the incompatibility
                                              problems cannot be ironed
out soon enough.
                                                   "My business takes me
to San Diego County quite a
                                              bit, and it's frustrating
having to crawl along with
                                              other cars as they make
their way through the
                                              checkpoint when the PAL
lane is also available. It's not
                                              just the business trips.
My wife is from Rosarito, so
                                              we rely on the PAL lane a
lot," he said.
                                                   Grijalva said many
PAL users wanted to continue
                                              using the old bar code
system to go through the
                                              checkpoint commuter lane
while a single system is
                                              developed. "We had to tell
them that the bar code
                                              reader is no longer being
used, and we can't issue them
                                              a transponder until a
solution is worked out [with the
                                              tollway agencies]. You
can't use the PAL lane without
                                              a transponder, even if
you've already passed a
                                              background check," he
said.
                                                   Frank Barbagallo,
deputy director of toll operations
                                              for the tollway agencies,
said vehicles are allowed to
                                              use multiple transponders
if the devices use different
                                              frequencies.
                                                   FasTrak, licensed by
the TCA, is the standard
                                              established by Caltrans
for collecting tolls throughout
                                              the state, he said, and
uses "the same radio frequency . .
                                              . throughout the state.
The problem here arose when
                                              the Border Patrol decided
to use the same frequency
                                              for its PAL transponder.
The same frequency is being
                                              used for two different
systems."

http://www.latimes.com/editions/orange/20010410/t000030569.html