In January, the PA Turnpike enters a new phase to modernize America’s first Superhighway, one that serves as an economic engine for the Commonwealth, region, and eastern transportation corridor. When Open Road Tolling (ORT) goes live on January 5, 2025, it will standardize rates and bring uniformity. These per-mile rates will keep toll rates on the PA Turnpike mid-range compared to other US toll roads.
Today, more than 550,000 customers drive a portion of the PA Turnpike daily to commute to work or school, for commercial business, to cross the state as they head off on vacation or simply to enjoy a scenic ride. There is often much misinformation printed about the toll rates in Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Turnpike’s rates are competitively priced and hardly the most expensive.
Open Road Tolling (ORT) goes live on the Pennsylvania Turnpike January 5, 2025.
In fact, 86 percent of our customers use E-ZPass. Our E-ZPass toll rates rank 24th out of 47 toll agencies and are 20% lower than the national average. Our toll rates for Toll-by-Plate customers rank 15th. And our commercial vehicle toll rates are 33% lower than the national average.
Our toll rates are driven by the cost to maintain and operate our system; our capital program to rebuild and expand our roadway, and debt service incurred by a legislative mandate (Act 44) that required yearly, $450 million transfers to PennDOT to maintain the Commonwealth’s highways, bridges and public transit. Act 44/89 payments have been reduced to $50M, however the debt service remains and is funded through annual toll increases.
Still, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission’s toll rates remain competitive because it is committed to strong financial stewardship, controlling operating expenses, managing debt efficiently and implementing innovative ways to generate additional non-toll revenues through asset monetization efforts.
At 565 plus miles, the PA Turnpike is the second largest stretch of tolled roadway in the US. It’s not lost on me that our customers use this as a road of choice, and we recognize that they pay a premium to use our roadway, especially with the impact of Act 44. With that comes our commitment to maintain and enhance our 84-year-old system to provide a smooth, safe roadway for customers during every season of the year and every hour of the day.
As part of our service, our 550,000 customers who use the PA Turnpike daily enjoy many benefits, including:
24/7 access to a system-wide roadside assistance.
a dedicated State Police Troop.
overnight maintenance work to minimize travel disruption.
a network of 17 service plazas open 24/7 offering food, fuel, restrooms, parking and more.
a dedicated maintenance force providing rapid snow, trash and object removal, infrastructure repairs and routine safety equipment evaluations.
Open Road Tolling is another example of how we are evolving to meet customer needs for greater safety and mobility. In this system, tolls are charged electronically as customers drive at highway speeds without slowing down or stopping beneath overhead structures — called gantries — located between interchanges. When ORT launches east of Reading and along the entire Northeast Extension in January, we move to a standard, per-mile rate that keeps our toll rates mid-range compared to other United States toll roads.
This advances safety by eliminating confusion and lane switching associated with traditional stop-and-go tolling. Demolishing tollbooths reduces driver stress and distraction upon entering or exiting the system. And non-stop travel also reduces emissions, requires less fuel use, and leads to a cleaner environment. The Turnpike’s transition in 2020 to cashless tolling resulted in a 45% systemwide reduction in CO2 emissions, or approximately 65 tons of CO2 emissions per year.
Open Road Tolling reiterates our commitment to the safety of our customers and employees while modernizing our operations and meeting customer expectations.
We are excited for the future and supporting travelers as they see the benefits of the Pennsylvania Turnpike every day. We invite you to visit our website at www.paturnpike.com/ORT to learn more about Open Road Tolling.
Mark Compton is CEO of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Open road tolling keeps PA Turnpike’s per-mile rate mid-tier
Source link : https://www.yahoo.com/news/open-road-tolling-keeps-pa-143126448.html
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Publish date : 2024-08-30 03:32:00
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