Their composite vision follows. The 1986 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, with its influx of hundreds of thousands of visitors and multiple events staged throughout the metropolitan area, present city and state transportation officials potentially with a logistical nightmare. Handling the crowds, managing traffic and accommodating parking needs of many thousands of extra visitors, while already facing serious capacity constraints on the existing transportation system, will be a daunting challenge. The answer depends in part on whether private industry is willing to pick up the challenge. There is evidence, both here and abroad, that this is precisely what is happening.
Cars pass through a toll plaza without coming to a stop.
The roadside computer deducts the amount of the toll from the drivers' prepaid tag. Fumbling for change while waiting in long lines to pay a toll has become a thing of the past. Traffic backups at toll plazas have disappeared and pollution levels have gone down. The toll authority's revenue collection process has become more efficient and its plans to expand the toll plaza to accommodate more toll booths can now be scrapped at a significant cost savings. The above scenario is not a futurist's dream.