Cashless tolling is coming to two major Queens crossings this weekend.
The Bronx-Whitestone and Throgs Neck Bridges will no longer be accepting cash beginning at 3 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 30. The crossings are the last in the city to receive the new cashless tolling program under Governor Andrew Cuomo’s transportation infrastructure initiative.
Under the new system, all cars drive under a gantry equipped with cameras and sensors in any lane they choose. If the driver has an E-ZPass tag in his or her car, sensors will read it and deduct the appropriate toll from their account. If the driver does not have E-ZPass, cameras will photograph the license plate and a bill for the toll will be mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle.
Drivers are encouraged to visit the E-ZPass website to enroll in the program for 30 to 50 percent savings on tolls. The “Tolls By Mail” bills must be paid promptly, as drivers who don’t pay will be subject to fees of up to $100, registration suspension and other penalties.
Cashless tolling was instated on the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel, Queens Midtown Tunnel, Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, Cross Bay Veterans Bridges, Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and Robert F. Kennedy Bridge earlier this year. The Henry Hudson Bridge was the first to receive the program in Nov. 2016.
With the full implementation of cashless tolling, commuters are projected to save up to 21 hours of drive time every year, conserve over one million gallons of fuel and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20 million pounds, according to Governor Cuomo’s office.
“The accelerated schedule we undertook to bring cashless tolling to all of our facilities in 2017 underscores the MTA’s commitment to meeting the standards set forth by Governor Cuomo and the needs of a growing city,” MTA Chairman Joseph Lhota said. “For our customers, not having to stop at toll booths will allow for a smoother, quicker, and more continuous commute across all of our crossings.”
For more information on cashless tolling, visit the MTA wesbite.
