Article: Turnpike toll plan would be costly without E-ZPass (Warren: 2013, upkeep)

[Velvet Jones]

Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday

It all goes back to how private corporations are *always* (supposedly) more efficient at anything. In this case, it's probably true because they can pay the employees less and give them fewer benefits than normal government employees would have. I'm not sure if tollbooth workers are in a union or not, but I imagine that it helps cut costs if they can get rid of that, too.

Yes, I know that is the excuse, but that only works in certain cases. For example, in IT outsources the economy of scale is suppose to result in savings. If you hire an IT staff that can serve multiple clients at the same time they're suppose to be able to maximize their resources to the fullest. But in fixed service field like toll collection for the state there is no real way to increase efficiencies, other than cutting salaries and staff. Yes, I'm sure toll workers for a private company would only make minimum wage, but company overhead and profits often even that savings out. I've worked for two different outsources and I know their game. Usually they promise the world and extremely unrealistic cost savings, but within a year or two the client is either paying more than it originally cost to keep the services in house, or your service has degraded so bad that it becomes almost useless.

[tranceFusion]

I just wish they would make it easier to buy an ezpass. I tried to get one at one of the turnpike rest stops, but the vending machine was broken. I then drove to 3 giant eagle's (a "participating retailer") before finding one that sold them, and its service desk was closed.. so then I came back the next day and bought it, but couldn't use the thing until I went home and registered it online.. Awesome! How about some way to actually buy it and activate it near the toll both (you know, where the people who want to use it are actually likely to be), or have one mailed to you?

[greg42]

Originally Posted by tranceFusion

I just wish they would make it easier to buy an ezpass. I tried to get one at one of the turnpike rest stops, but the vending machine was broken. I then drove to 3 giant eagle's (a "participating retailer") before finding one that sold them, and its service desk was closed.. so then I came back the next day and bought it, but couldn't use the thing until I went home and registered it online.. Awesome! How about some way to actually buy it and activate it near the toll both (you know, where the people who want to use it are actually likely to be), or have one mailed to you?

Really, you thought you had to pick it up in person? You can buy it online or by phone. Can't believe you missed that.

PA Turnpike E-ZPass - Personal Account

[tranceFusion]

Originally Posted by greg42

Really, you thought you had to pick it up in person? You can buy it online or by phone. Can't believe you missed that.

PA Turnpike E-ZPass - Personal Account

I guess I am just an idiot

[gg]

Pa. Turnpike Tolls To Increase In 2014 « CBS Pittsburgh

[Aqua Teen Carl]

Someone in the comments said it goes up every year automatically. Not that it makes it better or anything, but we are Pennsylvania after all. This is the state with a governor that wants $1.7 billion in tax breaks to oil companies while pointing at education and going, "LOL U GUIZ".

[pman]

Originally Posted by Aqua Teen Carl

Someone in the comments said it goes up every year automatically. Not that it makes it better or anything, but we are Pennsylvania after all. This is the state with a governor that wants $1.7 billion in tax breaks to oil companies while pointing at education and going, "LOL U GUIZ".

it's part of rendell's act 44 where the turnpike is forced to fork over hundreds of millions of dollars annually to penndot. the original intent (right or wrong) was that the money would be generated from a system that included I80, when that failed, it fell to the existing system. corbett's new transportation bill ends this practice in about ten years (as opposed to 25 years under existing legislation). in the mean time, the tolls seem to have gotten so high that it is affecting usage...and at the worst time since driving is falling as it is.
while I don't agree with the massive tax breaks, this is hardly the governor's fault. democrats estimate that a shale fee would generate less than the turnpike hands over every year and that's assuming that it would be used to fund transportation and not schools or something else.

[SteelCityRising]

It currently costs $38 round-trip for me and/or my partner to drive from the Harmar Township I-76 interchange to the Harrisburg East interchange (where we hop another toll-free road into Lancaster, where he hails from). I don't think that's really out-of-line. With that being said if he wasn't always in such a hurry I'd take Route 30 the entire way. Sure, it might take an extra hour or two, but you'd get to see a lot of little towns, and even if you spent a tad more on gas with the stop-and-go traffic it would still account for less than the tolls.

[SammyKhalifa]

Originally Posted by SteelCityRising

It currently costs $38 round-trip for me and/or my partner to drive from the Harmar Township I-76 interchange to the Harrisburg East interchange (where we hop another toll-free road into Lancaster, where he hails from). I don't think that's really out-of-line. With that being said if he wasn't always in such a hurry I'd take Route 30 the entire way. Sure, it might take an extra hour or two, but you'd get to see a lot of little towns, and even if you spent a tad more on gas with the stop-and-go traffic it would still account for less than the tolls.

This weekend it cost me $5.25 to drive the turnpike from the Ohio gateway to the I-376 exit.

For those of you keeping track at home, that is $5.25 to drive on the turnpike for TEN MILES.

Of course after that I paid a dollar for the five miles between the turnpike and the end of the toll portion of I-376. I guess I could consider that a deal.

[UKyank]

Why does it cost a different amount depending if your going west or east on the turnpike? Is there some rationale for it