Posted on 12/04/2017 7:41:39 AM PST by EdnaMode
WASHINGTON — Drivers on eastbound Interstate 66 saw tolls fluctuate frantically and top out at almost $35 during the Monday morning commute, the first with dynamic tolling on the highway.
Rush-hour tolling began at 5:30 a.m. and early morning drivers saw tolls at around $3.50. Within an hour, the tolls had risen to $10 and eventually reached $34.50 at the height of rush-hour. By 9 a.m., prices were back down to below $10, said WTOP’s traffic reporter Dave Dildine, who spent the morning driving on I-66 to report the latest conditions.
“It’s going to take some time for us to kind of get everything smoothed out and see what those toll prices are going to be consistently,” Jenni McCord with the Virginia Department of Transportation told WTOP on Monday.
Traffic moved smoothly throughout the morning and WTOP’s traffic center reported that the number of drivers on I-66 declined compared to typical Monday morning volume.
“There were no delays inside the Beltway — that’s the point of congestion pricing — to keep the carpools and paying solo drivers moving. As demand goes up, the price does too,” said WTOP’s traffic reporter Dave Dildine.
The George Washington Parkway absorbed the brunt of the traffic, with Virginia Route 123 and U.S. 50 picking up extra drivers as well. A WTOP listener reported that getting onto Interstate 495 south in Fairfax County was “a mess” during the rush hour.
WTOP listeners expressed frustration at the toll prices on Twitter.
(Excerpt) Read more at wtop.com ...
My daughter had to learn how to avoid the tolls
In the original plan, none of the Federally funded interstates were supposed to be toll roads. Subsequent administrations allowed that to change. The original designers were right.
CC
Partially true.
Tolls were allowed to pay for infrastructure, bridges, et al, but as soon as the object was paid for the toll had to come off.
Jacksonville, FL tried to keep their toll booths when the I-95 St. Johns Bridge was paid for after 30m years, but lost in court...............
Fluctuations and increases like this are fine. As long as payment is made in Bitcoin.
Interesting: a progressive use tax.
Why? It didn't take you any time at all to get it to $34.50.
I used to live in the area and commute into DC.
I am just LOLing at some of the comments from the ticked off middle level bureacrats on the WTOP site - they are demanding pay increases to cover these tolls. LOL.
What if you are from out of town, and don’t have an EZ pass transponder?
This can be very tough on lower income type office workers. If your take home pay is $60 a day, and you end up paying a third of that just driving to and from work? That’s going to add up.
Why are they tolling these roads? Where is the money going?
Aren’t they just going to see more congestion on adjacent free roads?
If anybody says the money is for road maintenance, then that begs questions about where DMV fees and gas tax money is going.
I don’t think too many of these commuters are lower income type office workers. They are almost all government drones
Price gouging practiced by the government. If allowed, this dynamic tolling could expand to all kinds of dynamic taxing.
Supply and demand. You want congestion-free lanes, you have to pay what it’s worth - and other drivers are willing to pay $34 for it.
First day will, of course, fluctuate wildly while some try it for sheer novelty, and others discover the hard way that maybe it isn’t worth that much after all (after driving up the price by actually being willing to pay that much).
I’m all for paid toll lanes. Gives people a what-it’s-worth congestion-free option, and gives everyone else a free you-and-everyone-else option.
All true.
Drove to Orlando from Long Beach for A school....first time I have ever heard of a toll freeway was getting off to use the bathroom nearing my destination. Booth...worker, 7 bucks please.
For what?
Never got on that highway again.
Every time I go to visit my dad in North Carolina I seethe when I have to pay tolls on the “Robert C.Byrd” turnpike(I-64/77). Beautiful road, horrible man.
CC
Apparently, driving to work without incurring a toll is NoVa’s favorite past time. I got the scenic tour of Fairfax during Thanksgiving. It’s amazing how much cool stuff is up there.
Discriminatory. This closes the roads to all but the rich. Why not fix the roads to support the traffic instead of squeezing people? I-66 and I-495 variable tolls are wrong.
And yes, as a former 19-year resident, I remember the stupid agreements they wrote to limit widening I-66. How about run the Metro out to Chantilly and Manassas? And a Metro around the beltway as well.
Discriminatory. This closes the roads to all but the rich. Why not fix the roads to support the traffic instead of squeezing people? I-66 and I-495 variable tolls are wrong.
And yes, as a former 19-year resident, I remember the stupid agreements they wrote to limit widening I-66. How about run the Metro out to Chantilly and Manassas? And a Metro around the beltway as well.
It’s an isolated lane, priced to eliminate congestion. If you don’t have an EZ Pass transponder, or can’t afford the going rate, you get in the other free lanes and wait thru congestion with everyone else.
If you have a GPS, most have software that you an use to avoid tolls.........................
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