With all the financial challenges trucking continues to face there is one you may not have thought about. And it may be increasing faster than all the rest.
Toll costs.
Some of the toll increases may not appear startling, given other cost increases. Tolls on the Ohio Turnpike increased nearly 8% in early 2024. The New York Thruway also implemented a 5% toll increase at the beginning of the year, while tolls on two of the North Carolina Toll Authority expressways moved up by as much as 4%. Toll roads in Illinois have 2024 increases for trucks only, which differ by toll plaza and time of day… and so on. You get the picture.
But you don’t have to take the full brunt of toll increases. You do not need to bear the burden of the toll differential every system imposes on toll-by-plate transactions. You can save money on tolls by using PrePass Tolls. Here’s how.
Toll roads use two systems to assess their charges: 1) “toll by plate,” where a camera or video records the license plate number, while in-road loops measure the number of axles and roadside readers look at vehicle length and height; and 2) “toll by transponder,” where all the vehicle characteristics and the account to be billed are captured electronically.
Toll roads charge more for “toll by plate” transactions due to their higher administrative costs – matching blurry or obscured license plate photos to vehicle ownership records and mailing invoices in the hope they will be paid.
As the Maryland Toll Authority, which offers a choice of video tolling or transponder use, says on its website: “Video toll rates are 1.5 times (50% higher) the base toll rates… Video toll rates are the highest rates to offset the higher cost of processing video tolls.” The Central Texas toll road system warns that users without a transponder will pay rates that are also 50% higher, plus a $1 per transaction processing fee. But you can contain your toll costs, and enjoy many other benefits, by using PrePass Tolls.
With PrePass Tolls, you not only receive the lower cost benefit of “toll by transponder,” but you also receive one invoice for all the toll facilities you use, with toll charges posted online for you to see the same or next day as billed by the toll authority. No more waiting for multiple invoices in the mail; you can manage your toll costs in near-real time. No more cash deposits or credit lines to monitor with multiple tolling authorities; you can maintain just one account with PrePass Tolls. PrePass Tolls also automatically passes on any applicable toll volume discounts to you.
PrePass Tolls also includes the first-of-its-kind GPS toll validation, reconciliation, and maximum toll dispute resolution features. This integration merges the power of the PrePass app with the analytical capabilities of the INFORM Tolling platform, granting fleets an intuitive tool for managing toll expenses with precision. Through real-time GPS data integration, the PrePass app and INFORM Tolling platform combine to offer motor carriers the ability to validate toll charges, reconcile discrepancies, and dispute max tolls, simplifying the toll management process like never before.
Tolls are going up in 2024 and problems with truck tolls will arise. Stay ahead of the curve with PrePass Tolls.
The PrePass blog and podcasts are published as a public service of PrePass®, the most reliable and technologically advanced weigh station bypass and integrated electronic trucking toll payment platform in North America. PrePass also includes INFORM™ Safety and INFORM™ Tolling software for improving truck safety scores and lowering toll costs.
