rfid news out today

While the news was in todays rfid news, the date of the ann was Sept 2 2009; so it seems things are moving.

Sirit to take RFID toll system to Buenos Aires' highways
Wednesday, September 2, 2009 in News
Sirit has received the go ahead from Autopistas Urbanas S.A. (AUSA), the administrators of the Buenos Aires highway network, to install their electronic toll collection system in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The system will use 90 Sirit IDentity 5100 readers working in conjunction with AUSA legacy tags. Approximately 80 lanes will be outfitted with Sirit’s system over the next several months.

The current tolling system through Argentina’s largest city is used by more than 300,000 vehicles daily, with only 20% of vehicles taking advantage of electronic tolling. The AUSA is currently lowering electronic toll rates in an effort to encourage drivers to move away from cash payments and embrace the speedier electronic system.

And...

TORONTO, Sept. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Sirit Inc. ("Sirit") (TSX:SI), a global provider of radio frequency identification ("RFID") technology, announces that it has received approval from Autopistas Urbanas S.A. ("AUSA") to install Sirit's electronic toll collection ("ETC") system in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. The system will utilize 90 Sirit IDentity 5100 ("ID5100") readers which will support the AUSA legacy tags. This installation demonstrates the increasing use of Sirit's technology which has recently been adopted to improve legacy systems throughout South America.

AUSA is a Buenos Aires City-owned, highway concessionaire responsible for the construction, expansion and administration of the city of Buenos Aires highway network. The total area covered by AUSA's six highways is 41.2 km plus 17.1 km of interconnected roadways.

Approximately 80 lanes will be upgraded with Sirit's RFID passive toll technology over the next several months. The current tolling system through Argentina's largest city is used by more than 300,000 vehicles daily, with only 20% of vehicles taking advantage of electronic tolling. Plans include offering lower electronic toll rates to encourage users to move away from cash payments.

The installation is the direct result of a successful pilot which clearly demonstrated the capabilities of the new Sirit system to AUSA.

"We have experienced firsthand the flexibility and ease of installation of Sirit's technology. Sirit's system has resulted in significant improvement in the dedicated lanes installed on the Illia toll plaza since June. Our testing has demonstrated that this is the best solution to increase electronic toll penetration in the city of Buenos Aires which in turn, will improve travel time and efficiency throughout the system," commented Ing. Gustavo Matta y Trejo, President, AUSA.

"Sirit is privileged to be working with AUSA in Argentina. We understand AUSA's need to improve the efficiency of their current toll road infrastructure and are excited to provide what we believe is the most cost effective and reliable solution. The benefit to AUSA will be significantly improved speed and efficiency for the city of Buenos Aires with minimal interruption to upgrade their current systems," said Wolf Bielas, President Latin America, Sirit.

This says they are using AUSA's tags. Does this mean that MIK is not part of the deal? May be time to ring Capt Matt.
Cheers jwt