Case Study: Tyne Tunnel Crossing operator

TT2 Limited has improved transaction security and the customer experience with Payment Automation from Netcall.

The Challenge

TT2 Limited is responsible for the service delivery and finance of the three tunnels that make up the Tyne Tunnel Crossing, a major thoroughfare that handles over 47,000 journeys daily. Almost 45% of these journeys are made by regular commuters who use the Permit Pre-paid Tolling System, which enables them to pass through the tunnel using a ‘tag’ displayed on the vehicle’s windscreen. The steadily increasing volume of traffic has resulted in TT2’s call centre being under more pressure to process payment calls, especially at month-end, when the number of calls is at its peak.

TT2 was already a Netcall customer, using a bespoke auto-attendant solution to interface with their credit card confirmation provider. However, a faster and more reliable processing method was needed which would remove the dependency on manual payment handling, while adhering to all payment security and PCI compliance standards.

With such a high dependency on telephone payments, any new solution had to have the capacity to integrate seamlessly with existing systems. TT2 also looked at extending pre-paid permit top-up to the web, a challenge in itself due to multiple back-end systems.

The Solution

When the back-end payment gateway provider announced that they would be withdrawing support, TT2 took the opportunity to upgrade to the latest Netcall platform and add their Payments solution, consisting of eight auto-attendants, to process customer payment calls.

Working closely with Netcall, the parallel Payments solution was set up to commission the new toll system and then redirect incoming calls at the point of system change-over to create a seamless transition from old to new. TT2 also used the new platform’s integration capability with their new web top-up service. This allows the telephony platform, rather than the web interface, to access the data from the toll system for customers that log in to request information on their accounts. The separation of the web database and the payment database increases data security and TT2’s PCI compliance.

The Result

TT2 now offers customers the option to choose either phone or web to access their account, check their current balance, make a payment and update their account details.

Currently, payment automation allows over 80% of customers calling TT2 to self-serve. This includes making a payment and checking their account balance.

“The Payments system has made a tremendous difference to the way we process payments at TT2. It has helped us to achieve operational efficiencies using an automated, streamlined approach and has brought tangible financial benefits too.”

We place great importance on the customer experience at the Tyne Tunnels and I believe the Payments system offers our customers a more reliable, secure facility than the previous system. It also assists us in providing a more consistent level of customer service.”  Rachel Turnbull – CEO