What's with these Tolls? (Dallas: credit report, home, to buy)

[Trailing Spouse]

If you don't mind me asking, where do you buy toll tags? Are they electronic tags or do you still have to STOP at a booth?

In Illinois, we have electronic transponders and we can drive through the toll lanes and not stop.

[lh_newbie]

It was my understanding that the gas tax covered federal and state highways. City roads were built/maintained via city taxes (property, sales, etc).

Since I don't drive on the toll roads, except on very rare occasions, the toll fees don't bother me in the least. Pay per use. You have two choices: use alternative routes or pay the fee. If these roads were paid with tax money, I would be paying for yet another infrastructure cost that I simply don't use.

As someone always says here, there's no such thing as a free lunch. If a toll road wasn't put in place, we'd be paying for it in another way. Toll roads actually localize the cost to the people that actually use it - meaning they may pay a higher per-use fee, because there is a smaller pool of people paying for it - but it is indeed the people that use it that pay. Conceptually, you can't argue with the logic. If you don't like it - move closer to work or take alternative routes.

The only way to avoid these infrastructure costs are to reduce demand for roads - which really means increasing density, increasing transit times, avoiding driving, encouraging people to live closer to work, encouraging public transportation and/or increasing taxes. Really, the choice is yours.

Brian

[lh_newbie]

Originally Posted by Trailing Spouse

If you don't mind me asking, where do you buy toll tags? Are they electronic tags or do you still have to STOP at a booth?

In Illinois, we have electronic transponders and we can drive through the toll lanes and not stop.

www.ntta.org - it's an eletronic transponder.

[nativeDallasite]

Originally Posted by new2sa

Yes, that's the full cost. If I drove it everyday, I'd get a toll tag because it is discounted and certainly quicker than having to stop and finding all those quarters. Yesterday, I got a full $10 roll of quarters at the first booth and came back w/one dollar's worth in one trip!

Good grief!!!!!!!!

Admittedly, I've been a holdout getting a toll tag, because I just have a personal "thing" against it, I guess. To me it's just like using a credit card, i.e., when you're not doling out the cash everyday, you don't realize just how much you're spending 'til you get the bill and even with the discount, it can run up darn quick!

True, but I don't use the toll roads that often. It's just nice to not have to dig around desperately for change; I rarely carry cash anyway.

And, with GBT, it started out at 25 cents, then up to 50 cents, then 75 cents, now a $1.00 a toll booth! Wayyy too darn much of an increase in too short of time... where does it stop?

We can thank the exurbs for that. It's costing the rest of us an arm and a leg to bring roads to them.

[nativeDallasite]

Originally Posted by Trailing Spouse

If you don't mind me asking, where do you buy toll tags? Are they electronic tags or do you still have to STOP at a booth?

In Illinois, we have electronic transponders and we can drive through the toll lanes and not stop.

You can get them on the NTTA's website but mine took 3 weeks to arrive. It was a major pain. Before I got license plates on my car I confess I blazed through a toll booth or two without paying because I didn't have the correct change. Without a license plate there wasn't any way for them to trace me.

[Lakewooder]

nD you scofflaw! I remember the days of people travelling tipsy up the tollway at over 100 mph in German cars (I was a scofflaw too!). Now I find it a badge of honor that I don't have a tolltag.

[Trailing Spouse]

Originally Posted by lh_newbie

www.ntta.org - it's an eletronic transponder.

Thank you!

[nativeDallasite]

Originally Posted by Lakewooder

nD you scofflaw! I remember the days of people travelling tipsy up the tollway at over 100 mph in German cars (I was a scofflaw too!). Now I find it a badge of honor that I don't have a tolltag.

Hey, it's not my fault. The roads have changed so much since I left and the tolls have gone up too. I didn't PLAN to dodge tolls, but what was I going to do...stand there blocking the booth, begging for change? They don't take credit cards.

[Debsi]

Originally Posted by ladysrodgers

Thanks for your answer. I'm beginning to better understand the whole thing now

I just dropped my son off in front of the terminal. It took maybe 10 minutes or less, then got charged the $2.00. I did have my son give me a roll of quarters before we even left for the airport. LOL

Oh well......I broke down and got a toll tag just for convenience sake.

I never use my the toll tag gate when I am dropping somebody at the airport because I always return out the same entrance I came in. It is cheaper to take the little ticket when you enter and just pay $1 as you leave.

[Trailing Spouse]

Originally Posted by nativeDallasite

You can get them on the NTTA's website but mine took 3 weeks to arrive. It was a major pain. Before I got license plates on my car I confess I blazed through a toll booth or two without paying because I didn't have the correct change. Without a license plate there wasn't any way for them to trace me.

Thank you!