Toll Sponsorship Pilot Program Under Way for Cheasapeake Bay Bridge

For Maryland and Washington, D.C., motorists, reaching the beach—or even Kent Island for a day of shopping—during summertime involves thoughtful strategy and tactics: What to pack and when to challenge traffic across the 4.3-mile Chesapeake Bay Bridge. The Maryland Transportation Authority (MdTA) is offering drivers a prepaid toll incentive to schedule trips during off-peak hours through an innovative corporate sponsorship program.

“MdTA has a great idea here,” explained KCI Project Manager Jackie Seneschal, who assisted MdTA with the pilot study. “Traffic backups on Friday afternoons and Saturdays can stretch several miles, and people get really frustrated. So this program offers a win-win for everyone: motorists get a free ride across the bridge and advertisers get a phenomenal opportunity to disseminate their message.”
” More important,” added Seneschal, “we’re changing mind sets about when to travel, and this new thinking will help to reduce congestion—not to mention general aggravation—for drivers during peak hours.”

Under the pilot program—targeting three consecutive weekends beginning on June 13—advertisers would be allowed to post signs, banners, and other promotional material for a full week prior to the 12-hour sponsorship event, running from 7:00 p.m. Friday to 7:00 a.m. Saturday. The Authority received bids on April 22 from advertisers interested in the promise of reaching more than a million people. MdTA set minimums for the bids at $52,500 to $61,300 for individual events, with a minimum lump sum option of $172,050 for all three events. If successful, the initiative could be extended through the summer.


© KCI Holdings 1994-2006