EZ-PASS Question

[Greg Perkins]

Hi,

i currently have a EZPASS transponder in my car, and it's linked to my parents credit card....does anybody know (i believe that this applies to east coast people) if the tollbooth i pass through will appear on their bill? like if i go through this toll booth will that booth and all the other ones i've passed through show up ?

[KenWittlief]

usually the credit card gets billed $25 at a time, when the account has run low.

I think they have to access their account online to see what each charge is for.

If you dont want the EZ pass to register as you go through a toll booth (if you are towing a trailer for example) you have to put the unit in the metalized bag that came with it.

BTW, since the time and date and toll booth location is recorded, its easy to tell how fast someone drove from the entrance booth to the exit, if you know the distance between them :^)

[Mike Schroeder]

yup my ezpass tells me where i have been and what tolls i went through, when and where

[Elgin Clock]

Silly states with their silly tolls.

[KenWittlief]

The NY state thruway was only suppose to have tolls for 20 years, to pay for its construction. When the 20 year anniversary finally came (a few years ago) the state decided they like our money too much, so they made the tolls permanant, and to show they were serious, they raised them a short time after.

[Jay H 237]

We haven't bothered getting an EZ pass yet and may not. No matter what you have to pay the tolls. If we travelled through the tolls everyday it would be worth it.

(We normally make several trips to New Jersey a year but due to the recent health condition of my grandmother we've been making trips 2-3 times a month now.)

[dubious elise]

Interesting. My family shares an I-Pass because we go to the Chicago area so often (though usually in different vehicles). Because of the way our account was setup online, there is no bill and no account of toll frequency or location - though I think that there is a way that you can request said service. Every time the I-Pass runs low (around $5.00), the credit card that it is linked to is automatically charged $40.00.

Unless there is an unusual frequency of charges, I guess there is no need to know when or where the charges were incurred. Just remember to try to keep the transmitter in the metallic bag when you aren't using it for extended periods of time. There are other similar frequencies that can set off the transmitter, motion-activated doors at grocery stores are among the biggest offenders (just like with personal radar alerters...not like I would know or anything )

[Madison]

Originally Posted by KenWittlief

The NY state thruway was only suppose to have tolls for 20 years, to pay for its construction. When the 20 year anniversary finally came (a few years ago) the state decided they like our money too much, so they made the tolls permanant, and to show they were serious, they raised them a short time after.

Well, the toll does help to, y'know, keep the road from completely falling apart. It's not a bad trade.

Out here in the west, the concept of a toll road is completely foreign to these people. It's strange.

[KenWittlief]

The EZpass in NY has no minimum use requirement - anyone can get one. And Im pretty sure there is no fee (besides the tolls)

If you are on the highway at all I recommend you get one. Its so much faster than waiting behind several cars in the toll lanes while people fumble with change and ask directions.

And if you ever have to jump in your car and go somewhere on a moments notice, you dont have to stop at the ATM machine on the way to get cash for the toll booth.

I think the EZpass in NY is good in NY, PA, MA, Conneticut?

And BTW, I think it was Raytheon Corp that invented/designed the technology for the EZ pass. They had one demand: under no circumstance can the pass be used to issue speeding, traffic or parking tickets. They did not want that dark cloud over their company - so you dont have to worry about getting tickets in the mail because your EZ pass flagged you for speeding.

[Elgin Clock]

Originally Posted by KenWittlief

I think the EZpass in NY is good in NY, PA, MA, Conneticut?

And BTW, I think it was Raytheon Corp that invented/designed the technology for the EZ pass. They had one demand: under no circumstance can the pass be used to issue speeding, traffic or parking tickets. They did not want that dark cloud over their company - so you dont have to worry about getting tickets in the mail because your EZ pass flagged you for speeding.

Like I said before in a round about way.. There are absolutely no toll roads in CT any more since a major accident a number of years back killed many people.

Tolls are stupid and unsafe. There is no doubting how much revenue they have brought in the states they are in, but lost lives can not be replaced with your change.

As far as tolls are concerned and the law, they DO track if you have paid or not. We drove through a toll once and paid and green light was not working and we drove through, and guess what.
We got a ticket sent to our house accusing us of not paying our toll.
Yeah.. we sent that bad boy in marked not guilty. So.. not only did we pay the 2-3 dollars for the toll, but also wasted a few cents for a stamp.

Like I said. Tolls are useless, unless you are in the business of making Ez-Passes of course. Then it's a great use to your bottom line.

[Kims Robot]

In NY there are several types of EZ Pass Accounts. The one most people use is the $25 one described above. I think you pay $10 for the tag deposit, and then get charged according to your tolls. You pay the same as people going through the other tolls, but its MUCH more convenient.

I drive the NY state thruway every single day (for nearly 60miles a day), so I signed up for the "thruway plan" which for $80 lets me drive the first 30 miles of every trip free (or if I just get off/on every 30 miles the whole trip is free! lol) and after that I pay a reduced rate.

But to answer the above question, yes, every single tollbooth you pass through is logged and can be tracked easily online.

And I MUCH prefer to pay for the thruway. I think in total with all the traveling I do (drive to CT and Ohio frequently), I pay $180/year... thats not a lot for 90% of my drive being really good roads and incredibly well plowed in the winter!

[sanddrag]

Originally Posted by Elgin Clock

There is no doubting how much revenue they have brought in the states they are in, but lost lives can not be replaced with your change.

Well, I think you just said it in the first half of that sentence. Tolls do have a use. Income for the state to maintain the roads and whatnot. But I'm wondering if you could explain a little more just how lives were lost at the fault of tolls. Thanks.

On a bit of a side note, the toll roads here in California are the nicest dang roads you've ever been on (at least by CA standards) and everyone drives like 85-90 on them.

[Madison]

Originally Posted by sanddrag

On a bit of a side note, the toll roads here in California are the nicest dang roads you've ever been on (at least by CA standards) and everyone drives like 85-90 on them.

Which roads in California are toll roads?

[Wetzel]

I have a SmartTag, and it only shows the total used. X in March, X in April, X in May. You can pay extra to get an itemized listing though. I don't have an EZPass, but my dad does from before they made the systems compatible. He does not get an itemized listing of toll usage, but I also don't know what state he got his from.

Elgin, with my SmartTag, I don't slow down for the toll booths. They are safer than regular intersections. They just read my pass and I go. I've even gotten the green light when I was doing 90 in an ambulance lights and sirens.

Ken: The Dulles Toll Road was supposed to only last until the road was paid for. They got away with leaving it by not raising the rates, leaving it at $0.25 for most exits. They just doubled it to pay for the metro expansion to the airport however.

Wetzel

[Mike Betts]

Originally Posted by KenWittlief

...And BTW, I think it was Raytheon Corp that invented/designed the technology for the EZ pass. They had one demand: under no circumstance can the pass be used to issue speeding, traffic or parking tickets. They did not want that dark cloud over their company - so you dont have to worry about getting tickets in the mail because your EZ pass flagged you for speeding.

Ken,

Up until a few months ago, I would have agreed that issuance of speeding tickets using EZ pass is an urban myth. Now I'm not so sure.

It is my understanding that they are using EZ pass to issue speeding tickets on the NJ Turnpike. The ticket is mailed to you and assumes that you know who was driving the car. However (since they can not prove who was driving), they do not assess points... Just fines.

I have an old college buddy in NJ who has a "need for speed" and he claims to have been nailed twice in this manner.

Mike