Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Roll-through and Open Road tolling has been implemented in many states, is not unique to New Hampshire.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rim505
I just got trapped on the wrong side of the concrete barriers at the infamous Hooksett toll booth. What a scam! I was behind a truck and I could not see well enough ahead to see that I had to actually exit the roadway to pay the toll. The signage was impossible to discern. There is nothing to tell the cash folks where to go. Talk about entrapment! I'm from the southwest part of the country, and I had never seen any nonsense like this before. I had my money out ready to pay, but by the time I figured out where to go I was on the wrong side of the quarter mile of concrete barriers. I'll gladly pay the toll, but I'm not paying any extra fee. I definitely will not be back, so don't get your hopes up on that. If the letter is too nasty, then I probably won't even pay the toll. Bench warrants ... who cares. Wreck my credit ... I doubt it. A picture of my number plates really does not show intention. Let's see the camera shots of my approach to the toll booth area to see how deceptive and dishonest this set up really is. I believe any judge out our way would agree, but they really do have better things to do with their time then play silly games like this. Way to go New Hampshire - "Love It of Leave It." As for me, I'm long gone. Adios.
I just went through there a couple weeks ago for the first time in eons...had no problems figuring out where to go. Signage was huge and gave you plenty of time to figure out where to be. Thanks Nonesuch for the picture above to prove my point!
I remember posting on this thread quite awhile ago. In defense of those who are confused... if you are not from the area or simply have never gone through the new toll before, and the lighting is a certain way or your view is blocked by tractor trailer trucks or something, you can easily go the wrong way. Once you go through once it should be old hat, I think. But I think even alert drivers can get confused. I think one of the issues is that the concrete divider starts so far back. You may think you can scoot over and instead get trapped on the "wrong" side of the divider.
And yes... I recall the good old days going through the Hampton tolls and the York toll in Maine... traffic backed up for miles... I was thinking of that this weekend when the northbound lane wasn't moving at all and was backed up for 5 miles or so. (Turned out to be a major accident which closed all lanes.) Remember when (at least in Maine) you'd get the ticket with the chart and you'd figure out how much you owed based on where you got on and where you were getting off? A flat rate helped but it was still a nightmare until Transpass and then EZPass.
Being fairly new to toll paying, the southbound cash tolls at Hooksett look like an exit. I passed it the first time driving through. Haven't made that mistake since. Had I been from a toll state, I probably would have never missed it. Of course I've noticed the tolls we go through when we go to NY make you slow down and go by a toll booth even if you have an EZPass. That state is not going to miss a penny of their toll money.
My only minor problem with the Hooksett tolls is the drive through lanes force me to go play with the big fast SUV's when I am on my motorcycle. Other than that I have no problem.
FWIW - if you want drivable well maintained roads you have to pay the toll and the fuel tax. My bike does not wear the roads at all but I still am willing to pay for the convenience of using the slab to get home.
And yes... I recall the good old days going through the Hampton tolls and the York toll in Maine... traffic backed up for miles... I was thinking of that this weekend when the northbound lane wasn't moving at all and was backed up for 5 miles or so. (Turned out to be a major accident which closed all lanes.) Remember when (at least in Maine) you'd get the ticket with the chart and you'd figure out how much you owed based on where you got on and where you were getting off? A flat rate helped but it was still a nightmare until Transpass and then EZPass.
I believe some states, like Ohio, still use this type of chart system on their toll roads.
Ironically as we were approaching the Hookset toll booth area we were taking my dad's cremains to be interred and laughing about how far my father would have driven out of the way to not pay this particular toll. We were even speculating how stirred up his ashes were becoming in the urn as we pulled out some money to pay the toll. Alas, he got the last laugh after all!
We used the New Jersey Turnpike on our way home and took pictures at the toll booth area to illustrate how clearly the the Cash lanes were marked in contradistinction to the Hookset toll booths. Also, there was no concrete barrier "kill zone" to trap unsuspecting travelers. Actually they did not need a kill zone because they charged us almost triple the two axle rate because I was pulling a little one axle cargo trailer. When I mildly protested at the toll booth I was told that I was considered the same as a truck. BOHICA!
I'm looking at the picture that Nonesuch posted on 6/28/14 and that sure was not the same view that we saw. I don't see the concrete barrier or the signs that say do not stop or back up. I am fairly certain that there were only two lanes as we approached the toll booth area until just before the concrete barriers appeared. What direction were you headed? Furthermore, I was pulling a trailer below the speed limit and at a safe distance behind a truck that had cut me off a couple of minutes earlier. Unfortunately, when I finally got a clear view of the toll booths I could not get over to where I needed to be. My wife was riding shotgun and she did not see it either. It makes no sense to exit a road to pay a toll. We drove over 6000 miles on this particular trip and nowhere else did this problem occur. We drove on a lot of excellent roadway that had no tolls, but I was ready and willing to pay the toll. Vayan Con Dios.
I like how the tolls are handled on some of the new roads in Texas; just drive through at full speed and they mail you a bill. No need for EZPass or cash, no traffic jam at the tool booths...
If you do it that way, the toll is 50% higher. Plus, there's been a big mess here about toll statements not being mailed from the tolling authority in a timely manner, so that sometimes the first statement someone receives has a "late charge" added on.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
