The North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) Customer Service, Project & Operations Committee on Nov. 6 advanced a suite of maintenance and technology procurements to the full Board for final action, approving staff requests to advertise or to recommend awards for projects ranging from roadway lighting and bridge repairs to payment-processing and customer-contact systems.

Staff told the committee the actions are part of ongoing asset management and safety programs and are funded primarily from the Reserve Maintenance Fund, with larger systems work paid from capital or operations funds. Nearly all motions carried unanimously and will return to the full Board for contract approval.

The committee first approved advertising for construction services to replace approximately 900 roadway luminaires along the Dallas North Tollway from I‑35E to the Sam Rayburn Tollway. Ms. Mao, presenting the lighting and several subsequent maintenance items, said the project will replace main-lane, ramp and under‑bridge fixtures with LED luminaires and estimated the project budget at $1,800,000, an eight‑month contract, with final award expected in February. Directors asked about night work and traffic disruption; Ms. Mao said construction will include day‑ and night‑work with minimal disruption.

The committee also authorized advertising for bridge-repair construction services on six Dallas North Tollway bridges. Ms. Mao said scope includes rocker-bearing repairs, corrosion mitigation, weld repairs and concrete spall work, with an estimated budget of $1,500,000 and a six‑month contract term.

In a grouped equipment procurement, staff presented four vehicle and roadway‑operations purchases to advertise: 23 vehicle‑mounted message boards ($460,000), emergency lighting and controls for roughly 150 fleet vehicles and 58 pieces of equipment ($960,000 over three years), 10 lane‑blade debris removal units ($365,000, one‑time), and snow‑ and ice‑removal equipment (11 spreaders, seven plows and three brine distribution units, $537,000, one‑time). Staff said the procurements will allow NTTA to replace aging units, add equipment as RSS fleet vehicles are added, and maintain parts availability; the committee voted to send the items to the full Board.

The committee approved advertisement for construction services to replace the Addison Airport Toll Tunnel fire-alarm system. Ms. Mao said the current system dates to the tunnel’s 1999 opening, parts are becoming difficult to source, and the replacement will include detectors, control panels, wiring, horns/strobes and cellular communications to meet National Fire Protection Association tunnel requirements. Budget estimate: $450,000; contract term: eight months.

On revenue and customer‑facing systems, Mr. Daley presented a recommended award for payment‑processing services to First Data Merchant Services (Fiserv). Staff said the current processor, Chase, processed roughly $2.3 billion in 2025 and handled about 98% of NTTA’s revenue. The recommended procurement is estimated at $300,000,000 over five years (projected to process $4.5 billion). Staff estimated transition and back‑office integration costs of roughly $750,000 and projected a nine‑month implementation window, with a planned go‑live aligned to the expiration of the current contract on Oct. 26, 2026. The committee voted to send the recommendation to the full Board.

Several construction contract awards were advanced for full‑board consideration. For ramp repairs on the Dallas North Tollway, staff reported three bids and recommended award to Gibson & Associates for about $1,900,000 (10‑month term). For drainage and erosion mitigation at Arbor Creek along the President George Bush Turnpike, staff reported five bids and recommended award to Granite Construction for approximately $6,300,000 (14‑month term). For system‑wide raised pavement marker replacement on the Dallas North Tollway, Sam Rayburn Tollway and the Lewisville Lake Toll Bridge, staff reported three bids and recommended award to Stripe Zone at about $345,000 (four‑month term). The committee voted to send all three awards to the full Board.

Staff asked the committee to approve a general engineering consultant (GEC) contract with VRX for services required under NTTA’s trust agreements. The contract was presented as an amount not to exceed $18,000,000 over four years; staff said annual work authorizations will be brought to the Board and that the contract value is an estimate aligned to the capital plan. The committee voted to send the contract to the full Board.

IT presented two related items. Dan Robichaud requested Board approval to contract Kimberly Horne (Kimberly Horne & Associates) for project‑management and technical support to procure and implement a new advanced traffic management system (ATMS) — a four‑year, $3,500,000 project to be paid from capital funds — and requested a four‑year extension with Southwest Research Institute to continue support of the existing Lone Star ATMS at up to $1,200,000 from the Reserve Maintenance Fund while the new procurement proceeds. Directors questioned the relative costs and timeline; staff explained the extension funds keep the current system operational and support major safety enhancements while procurement and implementation of a new ATMS proceed. The committee voted to forward both contracts to the full Board.

IT also sought approval of hardware‑replacement contracts: data‑center hardware (24 Cisco servers, five‑year support) at about $1,200,000 and workstation and peripheral replacements (Dell hardware, three‑year warranties) at about $1,600,000, funded from the Reserve Maintenance Fund. The committee approved forwarding both items to the full Board.

Finally, staff briefed the committee on the advanced contact system (customer contact center) procurement using a cooperative purchasing vehicle. Staff recommended NICE (with TTEC identified as implementation partner) as the preferred vendor for software and implementation. Staff presented a three‑year software and implementation estimate of $5,750,000, plus back‑office integration (Via Plus, $450,000) and project‑management subject matter expertise ($900,000), producing a three‑year project budget of about $7,750,000. Staff said the system is expected to reduce handle time, expand payment and contact options and could yield roughly $3,000,000 in annual staffing savings through improved efficiency; implementation planning targets a Jan. 2027 core go‑live. The briefing will be followed by committee reviews and a future full‑Board contract award.

Votes at a glance (committee action, moved to full Board):
- Advertise: Dallas North Tollway roadway lighting replacement — recommendation to advertise approved (budget est. $1,800,000).
- Advertise: Dallas North Tollway bridge repairs (6 bridges) — recommendation to advertise approved (budget est. $1,500,000).
- Advertise: Roadway operations equipment (message boards, emergency lights, lane blades, snow/ice equipment) — approved (combined budgets listed in text).
- Advertise: Addison Airport Toll Tunnel fire-alarm replacement — approved (budget est. $450,000).
- Recommend award (payment processor): First Data Merchant Services (Fiserv) — recommendation advanced to full Board (5‑year estimate $300,000,000; transition est. $750,000).
- Recommend award (ramp repairs): Gibson & Associates — advanced (≈ $1,900,000).
- Recommend award (GEC): VRX — advanced (contract value not to exceed $18,000,000 over 4 years; annual work authorizations to follow).
- Recommend award (Arbor Creek drainage): Granite Construction — advanced (≈ $6,300,000).
- Recommend award (raised pavement markers): Stripe Zone — advanced (≈ $345,000).
- Recommend award (ATMS PM): Kimberly Horne & Associates — advanced ($3,500,000 over 4 years); extend SWRI for Lone Star support ($1,200,000 over 4 years).
- Recommend award (IT hardware): Data‑center servers (~$1,200,000) and Dell workstation/peripherals (~$1,600,000) — advanced.
- Recommend procurement (advanced contact system): NICE (software) with TTEC implementer — briefing given; staff will return for committee/board approval (three‑year software/implementation est. $5,750,000; total project est. $7,750,000).

Details omitted or not specified in transcript: specific vote tallies by name (committee recorded unanimous passage; exact yes counts were not specified), some exact vendor contract language and full SOWs (staff said they will return with final contracts). The committee did not convene an executive session and adjourned after the briefing.

Staff and board members who spoke most often included Ms. Mao (project delivery/asset management presentations), Mr. Daley (customer-service and payment processing), Dan Robichaud (IT/ATMS and hardware), and multiple NTTA directors who asked procurement, lifecycle and budget questions. The full Board will receive the recommended advertising notices and contract awards for formal approval.