Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise (FTE) has been named as the recipient of two awards from the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA), the organization announced Monday.
As part of its Virtual 88th Annual Meeting and Exhibition, the IBTTA said it was giving FTE the award based on its development and testing of SunTrax, the state-of-the-art transportation technology research, development, and testing center being developed by FTE and the Florida Department of Transportation.
The facility is located on 475 acres of land between Tampa and Orlando and is composed of a 2.25-mile-long oval test track around a 200-acre infield. The multi-lane reversible track replicates typical Florida highway conditions. It features four toll sites that mirror FTE’s existing field sites for use to test equipment from vendors in various scenarios.
“The testing and research being conducted at the SunTrax facility are critical to providing mobility solutions for a growing Florida,” said Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Kevin J. Thibault, P.E. “This recognition highlights the department’s dedication to providing the safest, most innovative transportation system in the country.”
IBTTA also announced that FTE won the 2020 Toll Excellence Award for Technology. The awards are part of seven awards that recognize industry leaders in transportation projects worldwide that focus on environmental sustainability, advancement of emerging technologies, easing mobility and alleviating congestion for drivers, and development of new transportation systems in rapidly growing areas.
“FTE is the winner of this year’s President’s Award for Excellence and Toll Excellence Award for Technology for their SunTrax – Toll Technology Testing Center dedicated to the research, development, and testing of tolling and other emerging transportation technologies in safe and controlled environments,” said Samuel Johnson, CEO of the Transportation Corridor Agencies and President of IBTTA. “FTE, along with the six other 2020 Toll Excellence Award winners, continues to implement systems and strategies that are revolutionizing transportation throughout the globe and helping lead the way in creating transportation systems to keep our customers moving safely and efficiently.”