Pa. Turnpike preparing to launch Open Road Tolling

In January 2025, the Pa. Turnpike will launch Open Road Tolling (ORT), a cashless, free-flowing mode of collecting tolls without traditional toll booths. The conversion will start east of Reading in Berks County, and along the Northeast Extension, which runs through Lehigh County, Bucks County and Carbon County. The rest of the system, including here … Continued The post Pa. Turnpike preparing to launch Open Road Tolling appeared first on New Pittsburgh Courier.

Pa. Turnpike preparing to launch Open Road Tolling

In January 2025, the Pa. Turnpike will launch Open Road Tolling (ORT), a cashless, free-flowing mode of collecting tolls without traditional toll booths. The conversion will start east of Reading in Berks County, and along the Northeast Extension, which runs through Lehigh County, Bucks County and Carbon County. The rest of the system, including here in Western Pennsylvania will adopt the change in 2027.

ORT is a safer, more convenient way for customers to travel and represents the future of toll collection worldwide.

ORT changes how customers are tolled. Tolls will be charged electronically as customers drive at highway speeds beneath overhead structures—called gantries—located between interchanges. Equipment on the gantry and in the roadway will classify and identify the vehicle and electronically process E-ZPass or Toll-By-Plate transactions. No need for drivers to slow down, switch lanes or stop.

Following the conversion, the Pa. Turnpike will begin removing toll plazas and redesigning interchanges and traffic lanes to support a safer, free traffic flow with fewer obstructions.

ORT brings standardized rates across the Pa. Turnpike. Beginning in January, the Pa. Turnpike will use a base per-mile rate. That means customers will pay a single toll per segment as opposed to the aggregated trip toll they receive now.

Here is how that will work for a typical two-axle car:

  • E-ZPass customers will pay $.07 per mile + $1.09 per segment (distance between interchanges).
  • Toll-By-Plate customers will pay $.14 per mile + $2.18 per segment.

ORT requires no changes for drivers beyond properly mounting their E-ZPass transponder and keeping their vehicles, license plates and credit card information up to date on their accounts. Customers will continue to travel to and from their destinations as they always have. ORT makes that experience easier and more convenient.

The post Pa. Turnpike preparing to launch Open Road Tolling appeared first on New Pittsburgh Courier.