As the North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) moves away from traditional toll booths toward electronic tolling, it’s committed to helping its former Toll Collection Department employees find new careers within the agency.

 

In fact, 120 former Toll Collection Department employees have transitioned thus far into other positions within the NTTA after first learning new job skills.

 

The NTTA will convert its toll roads, bridges and tunnels to all-electronic toll collection (all-ETC) by 2010. The NTTA Board of Directors voted in August 2007 to switch the NTTA System to electronic tolling because all-ETC reduces stop-and-go traffic associated with cash lanes at toll plazas, which leads to better air quality. In addition, the uninterrupted lanes increase safety and mobility.

 

The driving force behind the long-term conversion is the successful transition of existing toll collection employees into agency growth areas.

 

One growth area is the 121 Tollway – formerly known as State Highway (SH) 121 toll road in Collin, Dallas and Denton Counties. The 121 Tollway officially joined the NTTA System on Sept. 1, 2008, after its transfer from the state highway system.

 

Nearly two-thirds of the maintenance workforce hired to care for the 121 Tollway are former Toll Collection Department employees who found new vocations within the NTTA.

 

Since the 121 Tollway was constructed as an all-ETC road, it’s only fitting that 64 percent of the maintenance employees serving the 121 Tollway – 34 of the 53 new positions – transferred from the NTTA Toll Collection Department after receiving job training. Those 34 employees combined have more than 218 years of NTTA service.

 

NTTA leaders say the agency is fortunate to have many outstanding, dedicated Toll Collection Department employees who have a desire to succeed elsewhere within the NTTA.

 

Retha Stewart, an NTTA employee for nearly nine years, is one such success story. She began her NTTA career performing data-entry work, moving up the ladder into a team leader position at the NTTA Command Center. In 2005, she took a lateral transfer into the Toll Collection Department, where she worked diligently to become a toll collection manager within two years.

 

Ms. Stewart said she and her fellow toll collection employees have felt reassured about their roles within the NTTA because of how the agency has handled the conversion. Top leaders met with all Toll Collection Department employees and stressed their value to the NTTA. The agency immediately offered job skills training, English-as-a-Second-Language classes, professional development workshops, job shadowing opportunities and even a job fair.

 

“All the employees who have successfully transitioned are truly indebted to the NTTA and the Board for making it possible,” Ms. Stewart said. “The NTTA has gone above and beyond trying to assist us, and it’s even further strengthened my resolve to be a dedicated employee and give them 110 percent.”

 

Ms. Stewart, who has been described as a natural leader, earned a roadway supervisor position within the Maintenance Department after a competitive interview process. She now oversees a stretch of the 121 Tollway from FM 544/Parker Road to Ohio Drive. Ms. Stewart’s responsibilities include scheduling, planning maintenance technicians’ tasks, ensuring that proper equipment is available and maintaining the budget.

 

“A lot of employees who are moving out to 121 as technicians came from Toll Collection,” she said. “They’ve been training on the Dallas North Tollway so they’ll be ready to take over 121 and do a great job. We are planning to bring SH 121 up to the NTTA standard.”

 

Ms. Stewart is especially proud of her move into a supervisory position historically held by men.

 

“My reception into the Maintenance Department was excellent,” she said. “Everyone has been very welcoming and very helpful with my learning process. Since my move to Maintenance, more female employees from Toll Collection have also transitioned over.”

 

On all-ETC roadways, tolls are deducted from the accounts of vehicles with electronic toll transponders, such as a TollTag, a TxDOT-issued TxTag or a Harris County Toll Road Authority EZ Tag. Vehicles without transponders will have a photo taken of their license plate, and a ZipCash invoice will be mailed to the registered vehicle owner. The ZipCash rate is higher than the TollTag rate to offset additional processing costs.