Free Republic

They are ringing in the new year with a resolution for more revenue. A 63-cent hike on the current toll rate for The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey crossings takes effect on Sunday. The toll for E-ZPass users will increase by 4.3% to $15.38 from $14.75 during peak hours — 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends

Among the many trends the pandemic accelerated, one of the least noted has been the increase in so-called cashless toll roads—highways where electronic fee-collection systems have replaced human toll collectors. Now, as traffic returns to pre-pandemic levels, another trend is plaguing these new systems: fare evasion. Around the country, turnpike authorities and bridge and tunnel operators are logging hundreds of millions of dollars in losses as scofflaws find increasingly inventive ways to outfox the systems. Though advocates say that the losses represent a small portion of total revenues, some officials are contemplating raising tolls to account for the shortfalls—in the...

Aug. 19—STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Staten Island resident Brett Roses was confused and concerned when he saw mysterious E-ZPass charges for his green 2002 Acura, a vehicle that has never left Staten Island. According to Streets Blog NYC, after a seemingly endless cycle of disputing E-ZPass charges and getting billed all over again, Roses noticed on a New Jersey Turnpike Authority ticket that the car pinning him with all of these false charges wasn't his at all. It was a white BMW. Roses went to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to clear up any confusion, but found that this...

New York Governor Kathy Hochul has been working on a plan to massively increase the tolls charged to people coming into New York City since last year. Now that plan is finally going into effect, or at least it was. The scheme may be on hold now because the Governor of New Jersey filed a lawsuit to stop the rate hikes from going into effect. He apparently couldn’t figure out a way to sue New York State directly, so he is instead suing the Federal Highway Administration over its approval of the plan last year. And since it’s not illegal...

The federal government granted final approval to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s congestion pricing program on Monday, the final step needed to create the nation’s first system of congestion pricing, including what tolls to charge and which drivers will receive exemptions. The MTA has yet to set the exact amount for the toll, but has signaled it will range between $9 and $23 per day to drive a car into the Central Business District. The agency is considering major discounts for drivers who come in overnight and lower income commuters without easy access to frequent transit service. “Congestion pricing will reduce...

In an effort to make it easier for customers to pay bills they receive by mail, the Pennsylvania Turnpike is linking with a national network that will accept cash at hundreds of convenience stores, drug stores and other outlets. The turnpike is partnering with the KUBRA Cash Payment Network to allow motorists to pay tolls or other turnpike fees at places such as 7-Eleven, CVS, Dollar General, Family Dollar, Sheetz and Walgreens, among others. The program — which includes a $1.50 surcharge for each transaction — is an attempt to make it easier for customers to pay and reduce the...

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation will negotiate with a nine-member group of contractors headed by an Australian firm to replace nine bridges proposed for tolling at an estimated cost of $2.5 billion. The group — which calls itself Bridging Pennsylvania Partners — lists Macquarie Infrastructure Developments LLC of Sydney as the lead contractor and includes FCC Construccion, S.A., of Spain, as well as six Pennsylvania companies. They include Joseph B. Fay Co. and Shikun & Binui America Inc., of Pittsburgh. The contract will require that 65% of the work be done by Pennsylvania firms. State Sen. Wayne Langerholc Jr., R-Johnstown...

Tacoma Narrows Bridge tolls will be reduced by 75 cents beginning in September, with the intent that they remain at that rate until the span is paid off in 10 years. The decrease is the result of Substitute Senate Bill 5488, which requires transfers of $3.25 million from the general fund to the toll bridge account each quarter until June 2032, for a total of $130 million. After the House changed the bill on Saturday, the Senate had to concur on Thursday, which sponsor Sen. Emily Randall, D-Bremerton, said it would. Rates — currently set at $5.25 with a Good...

The toll lanes for Florida’s I-4 Ultimate, a seven-year, $2.4 billion project, are now open, with 21 miles of rebuilt highway and new express lanes between Orange and Seminole counties. It is the largest road project in state history. Highlights of the project: Reconstruction of I-4 lanes and adding four new tolled I-4 Express lanes – two in each direction; Reconstruction of 15 major interchanges; Replacement of 74 bridges, widening of 13 bridges, and adding 53 new bridges. The I-4 Express lanes, the centerpiece of the project, are now open on the interstate’s center lanes and separated by concrete barriers....

Construction on Interstate 35W between North Tarrant Parkway and Eagle Parkway has officially crossed the half-way mark. The project, from public-private partnership North Tarrant Express Mobility Partners, is improving existing toll-free lanes and building two toll managed lanes in each direction. North Tarrant Infrastructure is the general contractor on the project. “This latest project on 35W is on track and will produce extra capacity and congestion relief north into Denton County by late 2023,” said Francisco Galdeano, COO of North Tarrant Express Mobility Partners Segment 3.

HOUSTON - The Harris County Toll Road Authority now has an expensive plan to fix design flaws in its billion-dollar replacement of the Ship Channel Bridge. The original structure was finished in 1982. But, with just two lanes in each direction and no shoulder for emergencies, construction on a replacement was started in 2018. HCTRA’s Executive Director Roberto Trevino was hired after flaws were discovered in the design, and he says the danger could have been catastrophic. "It could have collapsed," he says. Trevino says the county wanted the new bridge to be sleek and iconic, resembling the Fred Hartman...

The Pennsylvania Turnpike will install overhead tolling gantries on nine bridges that the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is considering for tolls. The work will be part of the turnpike’s $125 million project to install open-road tolling to replace the former toll booths along its 450-mile system. The possibility of PennDOT adding tolls to bridges — including the Interstate 79 bridge near Bridgeville — to raise money for their replacement is still under consideration, but the agency is finalizing an agreement with the turnpike to collect tolls. The turnpike is an obvious choice to operate the collection system — something PennDOT...

The cost to construct the Southern Beltway from Route 22 to Interstate 79 has been high — and it’s not just the $900 million price tag. Construction of the 13-mile highway disrupted lives, livelihoods and the environment along the path it carved through the countryside. The most extensive damage occurred in southern McDonald, Washington County, where reshaping the terrain initiated or exacerbated flooding problems that ended up chasing several families from their homes. We can say that the Turnpike Commission should have been more careful, and we have. But the truth is that there are always unintended consequences when excavating...

With just days to go before the Southern Beltway opens Friday, construction crews scurried throughout the 13-mile corridor to button up final details on the $900 million project. The work included painting lines and installing signs to guide motorists; stabilizing walls beneath bridges that pass over the roadway so construction crews won’t have to dodge traffic when the road opens; finishing the structure of some of those bridges; and seeding and planting along the median and hillsides or placing stones in areas where growing has failed. “We have things like line-striping to do, some signage to get done before the...

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation took the next step toward replacing and charging tolls on as many as nine bridges Monday, but motorists won’t pay to use the bridges until 2023 at the earliest. PennDOT announced it has selected three firms to submit proposals for finishing the design of the nine bridges and propose whether to bundle them together under one contract, replace them individually or a combination of the two. The department’s goal is to turn the bridges over to private firms to design and replace them, then maintain them for 30 years with the tolls covering the costs....

State officials plan to allow a private company to set toll rates and keep the revenue from the proposed I-285 express lanes — a move that will affect hundreds of thousands of metro Atlanta commuters. The firm would invest in the design, construction and maintenance of the new lanes, currently set for construction beginning in 2023, then recover its investment by collecting toll revenue for 50 years. Many details — including which company will operate the lanes, how much it will invest and any limits on its tolling authority — have not been determined. Georgia transportation officials say private investment...

After years of construction, with traffic-cone obstacle courses, tire-bursting potholes and white-knuckle steering along ever-shifting lanes, it might stand that the coming tolls for the rebuilt Interstate 4 would also bring the same level of dread. But drivers might be in for a pleasant surprise. “We actually don’t know yet how much the tolls are going to be,” said Jared Perdue, the state’s transportation secretary for Central Florida. “There are a lot of unknowns and a lot of assumptions.” But while final toll calculations are still underway, Perdue’s agency estimated recently that the I-4 toll lanes will now not be...

For years, I have heard that the only constants in this life are death and taxes, but I suspect this is not true. I think there’s at least one other constant, at least in my life — the Garcon Point Bridge. I have been writing about this Panhandle boondoggle for more than 20 years. Every time I’ve written a story about it, I have been convinced that that would be the last. Then something else happened that made me shake my head and start writing another bridge story. I’ve gotten more mileage out of that bridge than the motorists who...

With commercial traffic returning to pre-pandemic levels, the Pennsylvania Turnpike is increasing its spending on road improvements by nearly $200 million for the fiscal year that begins June 1. The turnpike commission Tuesday approved the capital spending increase to $660 million for the new year along with passing an operating budget of $417.3 million, about 2% lower than the current spending plan. Last year, the agency cut its capital spending from $606 million to $468 million as a result of losing more than $250 million in tolls due to reduced travel during the pandemic. Turnpike CEO Mark Compton said in...

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Drivers on Interstate 95 in Palm Beach County will have an easier and faster way to get around. Express lanes are being built in the southern part of the county, but that means years of construction are ahead. The Florida Department of Transportation is investing $1 billion in building express lanes from Broward County to Delray Beach. The tolled lanes would connect with the current lanes already built in Miami. "Driving on 95 right now, it is a zoo," said Christopher Tapia when asked how he'd describe driving on I-95. The express lanes project started in...