Toll roads on a multi-state trip.... How does that work?
 

Looking at a multi-state trip that would likely take me on toll roads in IL, OH, PA, NY, and MA.

I presume many roads no longer have staffed toll booths. Will all these do license plate tolls? Or?

TIA

E-ZPass should work in all those states.

If it is not staffed, they will do toll by mail from plate captured. MA is toll by mail. NY is a mix of both.

E-ZPass can potentially save a lot of time at locations are staffed.

Thanks to you both. So I just pick a state, set up an account and order a transponder?

If you start in IL, look for places where you can buy I-Pass (EZ-Pass from IL), at about a half dozen major toll/welcome plazas. They're listed on the website with hours. IIRC you can also order it in advance through some chain store, but IME it's easier and more efficient to just stop at the first toll/welcome plaza you encounter that sells the device. You'll need your driver's license, plate number, maybe an insurance card, and a credit card. It only takes a few minutes and they you stick the device on your windshield and are ready to go.

Otherwise, you can pay with cash or credit card at major places, in slower lanes, or pay within IIRC seven days on the internet. Your license plate number is captured if you use a "toll plaza" that doesn't permit you to pay.

However, in Ohio, EZ-Pass and pay-with-money seemed to use the same lane. It's a bit more convenient but hardly faster.

PA Turnpike was a toll road almost a century ago. It has only a few spaced entrances and exits, all of which were constructed with toll booths. I would expect that you can still pay with money, perhaps still with the system where you take a ticket upon entering and then pay for the entire trip when you exit, based on the ticket where you entered.

I may be in MA for awhile, so might it make more sense to order online from there? (Don't know how long it takes to get mailed)

I found it makes sense to obtain the transponder from the state in which you will do the majority of your driving. When I made my move to NYC, I first obtained a transponder from the Pennsylvania Turnpike Authority as it was the first state I encountered on my drive East that had tolls on my route. I used it a bit in NYC but discovered that there is a toll discount for local transponders that isn't applied to non-locals, so I switched to a NYC account. Toll multi-state interoperability is something to hope for in the future, but for now, I have transponders for California, Florida, and an EZ-Pass for the Northeast.

It appears that you are not traveling in the next few days. It may simply be easiest to order online from the state you choose and be done with the hassle.

As to which state, there may be nuances which give you a bit of a discount in the 'home" state, but those differences won't likely be particularly big if this is a one-shot trip. On the other hand, it may pay to order from your home state in case you regularly travel (on toll roads).

Toll-by-mail can be an expensive proposition depending on the state, so it is to be avoided unless it is a one-off and the add-on doesn't change things much for you.

Done

Thanks all

What is this thing you call a “toll road”? :confused: :p

Progress…. Sunpass and EZ-Pass now interoperable.

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/rent...=#post33295553

Now if they would just integrate with MN-Pass, which is a transponder system that allows single drivers to use the carpool lanes around the Twin Cities and pay a congestion-based toll ranging from 25 cents to 8 dollars. AFAIK, ND/SD/IA/KS/WI/etc. don't have any toll roads or carpool lanes.

Virginia does the same for the HOV/carpool lanes all over the state using the EZ-Pass "Flex" transponders. The Flex transponder has a switch for "HOV-On" when having the requisite number of people in the car or the "off" position when you don't. Pre-COVID the toll for single drivers using Rt 66 from the ~8 miles from the Beltway to the DC line has topped $45.....