The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday conditionally approved the National Freeway Bureau’s application to continue using the assigned frequency for the freeway electronic toll collection (ETC) system, adding that it has still not completely ruled out the possibility that the system could interfere with 4G telecom network operations.
The license was granted to the bureau in 2012 and expires on Dec. 31 this year.
It entitles the bureau to use the frequency band between 922.75 megahertz (MHz) and 924.25MHz for the freeway eTag system, which allows the bureau to charge drivers based on distance traveled.
Some NCC commissioners were originally reluctant to grant a license to the bureau for fear the ETC system could interfere with 4G telecom network operations, due to the two systems lacking an adequate buffer.
Though the bureau eventually secured the commission’s approval, the latter set several conditions, including moving the ETC system’s gantries, or increasing the number of base station installations to stop the interference.
NCC spokesperson Yu Hsiao-cheng (虞孝成) said the commission entrusted the National Taipei University of Technology with the task of conducting tests before they reviewed the case.
“We allowed the bureau to renew the license and to continue using the frequency because the test results were acceptable,” Yu said.
NCC Resources and Technologies Department director Lo Chin-hsien (羅金賢) said the renewed license would be valid until 2016.
“When the bureau first applied for the license, the 4G service had not yet been launched. We could only assess the potential interference at that time,” Lo said.
“Now we can use facilities to conduct actual testing. The results showed the 4G signals would not be lost completely when drivers pass through the gantries of the ETC system. They would only experience slightly slower transmission if they happen to be in an area with weak signals,” he said.
“However, the transmission would be back to normal as soon as they drive through the gantries,” he added.
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