Orbital's SmartTrack system provides up-to-date vehicle positioning information that will allow VTA to improve the efficiency of its fleet operations and service to its customers. The VTA contract is valued at approximately $14.3 million.

Mr. Dave L. Mathisen, Orbital's Vice President and General Manager of the TMS Division, said, "We are extremely excited about adding Santa Clara County to our growing list of metropolitan areas that have embraced our technology and whose residents are benefiting from improved transportation services. We are also delighted that we will be providing our leading-edge system to Santa Clara County, home to the technology-focused Silicon Valley, and an area that has long been emblematic of advanced technology."

The SmartTrack system provides real-time vehicle location information delivered through the U.S. Government's Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites. This feature-rich system, consisting of data processors and fleet management software, also boasts such in-vehicle passenger amenities as digital read-outs and voice annunciation of the next stop on predetermined routes. It incorporates an automatic passenger counter that gives local authorities the information they need to appropriately schedule vehicles to meet peak and non-peak passenger demand. The system's terrestrial-based communications component uses Motorola's newest-generation mobile radios that are field-proven for high-reliability.

Mr. Jim Unites, Project Manager for VTA, said, "With Orbital's proposed system, we will be using the most advanced integrated transportation management technology available. The system will be an important new tool in improving the reliability and performance of our daily operations, while enabling swift dispatching of personnel to incidents and emergencies. Ultimately, the system will allow us to provide real-time information to our passengers."

Orbital recently acquired Raytheon's transportation management business and combined it with the company's intelligent transportation systems unit to form Orbital TMS, the country's leading supplier of satellite-based AVL systems. Orbital TMS employs about 250 people at facilities in Germantown and Linthicum, Maryland.