Rodovias do Tietê needed just six months following the signature of the concession contract to plan, design and build the nine toll plazas along the 443km under its responsibility simultaneously. The work went ahead apace despite the constant rain. According to the Met Office, this was the biggest winter rainfall of the past 64 years in the State of São Paulo. The work went ahead with the dedication and support of a number of the concessionaire's staff.

The investment in the toll plazas amounted to about R$ 40.2 million, of which R$ 31.2 million for the infrastructure and R$ 9 million for the automation. To keep on schedule and to overcome the obstacles caused by the weather, the concessionaire's team of technicians focused its efforts on drawing up a plan that would allow the work to be carried out quickly. In all, 49 stainless steel booths were pre-erected and fitted out before being installed. The peripherals of the automation system, such as the sensors, barriers and traffic lights, were installed on site.

In tune at work

For the infrastructure five companies were charged with laying the pavement and another four with the construction work. To prevent delays due to the bad weather, the steel roofs of two of the plazas were erected at ground level and then raised and installed on the support structures by cranes.

During the work, the concessionaire selected, hired and trained the labour force for the tolls, local residents as and where possible.

"We adopted strategies to meet the deadlines. The works took 120 days, night and day, including weekends", pointed out the manager of the Rodovias do Tietê engineering area. The plazas were handed over to Artesp (State of São Paulo Delegated Public Transport Services Regulatory Agency) on October 26 and opened to the public on November 17.

According to the Rodovias do Tietê chairman, "The Automation, Engineering, Administrative, Legal and Human Resources teams were all in tune. The group is quite young, its members aged between 23 and 48, but it has many skills. Together and attuned, these professionals were able to meet an aggressive target, which was to have everything in working order in six months. We are pleased to have handed over the Plazas in a very short time, despite all the set backs [...]"

The Marechal Rondon toll plazas are located at Conchas, Botucatu, Pirajuí, Areiópolis and Agudos. Along the SP-101 (Campinas-Tietê) there are tolls at Monte Mor and Rafard; on the SP-308 (Salto-Piracicaba), the tolls are located at Salto and Rio das Pedras.