Makes Sense (and Dollars) on Road Toll Taxes

Many states have lowered highway costs by replacing numerous electronic equipment and human toll takers with electronic passes such as EZ-Pass. The incentive to us for using the passes is staying out of maddening long lines and not having to carry change. What is confusing to me is that most of these States now charge us a monthly fee to use something that saves them money.

They don’t need to purchase or maintain credit card machines, coin accepting machines, coin sorters, phone lines, vehicle stopping mechanisms, or personnel at each toll booth, administrative and supervisory personnel, equipment and facilities at each toll location, much of the equipment and personnel at a central location or all that cash on hand needed to make change. They don’t even pay for the pass, we do, either as a purchase or a one-time rental fee. So why should we pay a monthly fee varying from 75 cents ($9 annually) to $2 ($24 annually)? Well we don’t.

I was driving through Illinois and stopped at a plaza for coffee. I found a booth there for anyone who wanted an I-Pass which is good in about 14 States (all EZ-Pass States included). A $10 one-time lease for the electronic pass, $40 to pre-pay tolls, credit card number, some personal info, and I was off. No fee, I can check my usage on-line, they charge my Discover Card when my balance is low (and Discover credits me for the purchase), and the devise attaches to my windshield and is easily removable. I also found out that I didn’t have to go to Illinois to get an I-Pass, I could do it on-line from anywhere at https://www.getipass.com/ipass/OrderSelectAccountType.jsp.

So, why be stuck in long lines, wasting gas and chafing your patience, or pay monthly or annual fees (taxes) no matter how much? Even if you are only on a toll road once a year, this makes sense, and dollars.