In 1989, California passed legislation (Assembly Bill 680) permitting a limited number of toll facilities to be developed using public private partnerships. The California Private Transportation Company (CPTC) - consisting of Kiewit (later Level 3), Granite Construction and Cofiroute - was formed to finance, develop and operate the 91 Express Lanes. CPTC entered into a 35-year franchise agreement with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) for that purpose. The 91 Express Lanes, the first all electronic toll facility in the world, proved to be extremely successful. However, for various business reasons CPTC decided to sell its franchise rights to the 91 Express Lanes to OCTA in 2002. Cofiroute remained as the 91 Express Lanes’ operator under contract with OCTA.
The decision was then made to expand Cofiroute's North American business and, in January 2003, Cofiroute USA was formed as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cofiroute, S.A. Later that year, Cofiroute USA found immediate success in Minnesota. Cofiroute USA joined a consortium consisting of Wilbur Smith Associates, Raytheon, SRF Consulting and Frank Wilson & Associates to bid on the I-394 HOV Lane conversion in Minneapolis. The team was awarded the contract in December 2003 and the first conversion of a High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Lane to a High Occupancy Toll (HOT) facility was completed and opened in May 2005.
After a successful rebid of its operating contracts in California and Minnesota combined with the addition of another 16-mile segment of HOT Lanes in Minneapolis, Cofiroute USA is positioned to offer its expertise in ETC, ORT and HOT Lane design, installation and management to industry clients throughout the world.
Cofiroute S.A. was created in 1970 and currently is the largest private toll road concessionaire in France. With over 750 miles of freeway, 55 toll plazas and 600 toll lanes in operation, the company stands out for its originality and efficiency. Cofiroute S.A. is a part of the Vinci Group which is a publicly-held French company and is the largest concession and construction company in the world.
