Smart Tag holders driving north next fall will no longer fumble for change on northeast toll roads, after Virginia's electronic toll-paying system joins the E-Z Pass Interagency Group, the automated toll-collecting organization currently used in nine northeastern and mid-Atlantic states.
Gov. Mark R. Warner announced Tuesday morning on WTOP radio that Virginia's 230,000 Smart Tag users will soon be able to use automated toll facilities from Maine to Virginia. Likewise, travelers from Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and West Virginia will be able to use their E-Z Pass transponders in Virginia.
"People are very mobile, and they like the convenience of cutting travel time," E-Z Pass Executive Director John Platt said. "The electronic toll is at least three to four times quicker than paying by cash."
The merge will affect both in-state and out-of-state University students, many of whom travel state and northeastern highways including the Dulles Toll Road and Interstate-95 in Maryland.
"It will be good for commuters like me who travel north all the time and already use E-Z Pass," said third-year College student Elena Fotiou, a New Jersey resident.
All of Virginia's automated toll-roads operate under Smart Tag, said Barbara W. Reese, chief financial officer for the Virginia Department of Transportation.
VDOT operates three toll roads, including the Coleman Bridge (Rt. 17), the Dulles Toll Road and the Powhite Parkway Extension (Rt. 76). Local governments and private organizations own the State's other toll roads, including the Chesapeake Expressway (Rt. 168), the Dulles Greenway, the Richmond Metropolitan Authority Expressway (Rt. 195) and the Pocahontas Parkway (Rt. 895), Reese said.
Once VDOT and E-Z Pass officials complete the necessary technological and computer coding changes, consumers need not purchase any new equipment or fill out any paperwork. Smart Tag users can use their current transponders at E-Z Pass booths, and vise versa, she said.
The change "will be at no cost to the consumer," Reese said.
The merge also may offer Smart Tag customers new services that are currently accessible to E-Z Pass users, Reese said.
For example, E-Z Pass holders can electronically pay for parking at John F. Kennedy International, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty International airports.
"We've had some conversations with Dulles Airport about using technology for parking, but that's very preliminary," Reese said.
The decision comes on the heels of pricing discussions between VDOT and E-Z Pass officials, who had originally estimated the project would cost around $10 million. The current estimated cost has now been dropped to $3.5-4.5 million, Reese said.
Warner "had asked VDOT to look into it," Warner Spokesperson Ellen Qualls said. "It is a cheaper and technologically easier change to make so that was good news to him."
In addition to a more streamlined electronic tolling system for drivers, the merge has environmental benefits as well, Qualls said.
"The value is essentially two-fold," she said. "It eases congestion in Virginia at tollbooths, and the corollary benefit to easing congestion is cleaner air, because standing traffic pollutes the air more" than moving traffic.
Read More
Shots fired reported at 100 block of Harmon Street, no injuries reported
By Thomas Baxter | 4 days agoThis is the first community alert of June.
Full Board discusses financial aid challenges, medical research and entrepreneurship
By Thomas Baxter | 5 days agoBoard members discussed the Pan-University Entrepreneurship Initiative, a project that aims to help develop more entrepreneurial ventures at the University.
Finance Committee approves 2024-25 operating budget and Major Capital Plan
By Zackary Holt | 5 days agoThe proposed 2024-25 fiscal year budget for the Academic Division includes a 6.8 percent increase in spending over the previous year.
