HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission announced that they have begun the final stages of their All Electric Tolling program.
The commission states that work is now underway to relocate tolling points in eastern Pennsylvania from their current interchange locations. Highway-speed collection points are being built along the roadway between interchanges, which is called Open Road Tolling.
Open Road Tolling is a cashless and free-flowing mode of collecting tolls.
“Open Road Tolling is the culmination of the PA Turnpike’s decade-long journey to modernize operations and meet customer expectations for seamless, nonstop travel,” said PA Turnpike CEO Mark Compton. “ORT is a safer, more convenient way for customers to travel and represents the future of toll collection worldwide.”
With the new tolling system in place, vehicles can now drive at highway speed beneath overhead structures called gantries. These are located on the turnpike between the exit and entry points.
As quoted in the release, the Pennsylvania Turnpike is adding open road tolling due to the following:
- Fulfills customer expectations for seamless, convenient travel.
- Is safer for PA Turnpike drivers and its employees — and better for the environment.
- Allows new access points (interchanges) to be added more easily and at a lower cost, enhancing mobility and reducing traffic at interchanges and on connecting roads.
- Will help save the PA Turnpike more than $75 million a year.
On Sunday, April 30, Pennsylvania State Police started to slow traffic to allow crews to begin installing toll gantries across the eastern parts of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The work will occur over the next several months and will occur on Sundays and during off-peak hours.
The Turnpike is constructing 19 gantries east of the Reading Interchange to the New Jersey line and along the entire Northeastern Extension, also known as Interstate 476.
More information on the system can be seen here
The eastern portion of the system will go live in 2025. The system for the central and western Pennsylvania Turnpike roadway is expected to be built beginning in 2025, with an anticipated go-live date of 2027.
