"It really adds up."
Tollway, turnpike fees on the rise
Some drivers to pay $1; increase steeper for cash customers
November 15, 2006
By TONY HARTZEL
The Dallas Morning News
Copyright 2006
FORT WORTH – Driving on the Dallas North Tollway and the Bush Turnpike is going to cost more – enough to make some motorists fork over a dollar at each main toll plaza.
On Wednesday, the North Texas Tollway Authority formally approved raising the tolls on both roads, effective next September. Rates for TollTag users will increase a dime to 70 cents, and tolls for cash customers will go up a quarter to reach $1.
The board also approved a second, smaller rate increase that will take effect in 2010.
The tollway authority last raised its rates on the Dallas North Tollway in 1999 and on the Bush Turnpike in 2002. The agency's board of directors, faced with rising costs for planned projects and demand to build even more projects, had discussed toll increases for more than a year. In April, the board approved a policy calling for regular toll increases every five years, and that led to the toll increase approved Wednesday.
"We have to increase rates to not only maintain what we've got, but also to build for the future," said board vice chairman Jack Miller.
Revenue from the increases could raise $2 billion for road projects in the next 35 years. Projects could include the Trinity Parkway near downtown Dallas and a State Highway 360 extension in southern Tarrant County.
"We've been asked to do more to address the congestion issue," said Allan Rutter, executive director of the tollway authority. "This will do so in a way that addresses the concerns of a lot of people in our own region."
The agency offered some good news for motorists who slog through the tollway construction zone near downtown Dallas. Higher rates at the main toll plaza there will not take effect until construction in the area ends in mid-2008.
In 2010, tolls at main plazas will rise again slightly, going to 75 cents for TollTag users at each main lane plaza on the Tollway and Bush Turnpike. Cash customers will continue to pay $1.
The new rates apply at the tollway's three main toll booths, which are at Wycliff Avenue near downtown Dallas; Keller Springs Road in Far North Dallas; and Parker Road in Plano. The increases also apply at the Bush Turnpike's five main toll plazas – in Irving, Carrollton, Far North Dallas, Plano and Richardson.
Rates also will rise on all ramp tollbooths next year and again in 2010. Those rates vary, but most will rise by a nickel. The increases do not affect tolls on the Addison Airport Toll Tunnel or the Mountain Creek Lake Toll Bridge, which will remain at 50 cents.
"It really adds up," said motorist Michael Lovelace, who uses a mixture of freeways and city streets to get to his job near the tollway-Bush Turnpike interchange. "They don't pay me enough already."
The premium for using cash on tollway authority roads also is rising.
Cash users now pay a 25 percent premium at main tollbooths. That premium will rise to 43 percent next year, and the tollway authority hopes the higher cost will entice more people to get TollTags. During peak commute times, about 80 percent of all transactions recorded are with TollTags.
The board also has pledged to raise tolls on a more consistent basis after 2010. Under the guidelines for increasing toll rates, tolls would rise about 10 percent every five years.
"This allows us to plan regionally and for our customers to know what to expect," said Paul Wageman, chairman of the tollway authority board.
The new toll rates will not affect the new State Highway 121 toll road in Collin and Denton counties, which is owned by the Texas Department of Transportation. Portions of the all-electronic toll road have opened in Denton County, and tolls will be collected on those sections starting Dec. 1. State and regional leaders have set toll rates slightly higher on that and other state-operated roads.
Some motorists said Wednesday that they were not happy to have to pay more on roads that already have a lot of traffic.
"Do we really benefit from all that?" asked Brandon Finnigan, who said he used to commute on the tollway from the Frisco area to his old job at a car dealership in Dallas. He now works in real estate, which also requires a lot of driving. "The roads are nice, but there is always going to be traffic on them."
E-mail thartzel@dallasnews.com
© 2006 The Dallas Morning News Co www.dallasnews.com
Some drivers to pay $1; increase steeper for cash customers
November 15, 2006
By TONY HARTZEL
The Dallas Morning News
Copyright 2006
FORT WORTH – Driving on the Dallas North Tollway and the Bush Turnpike is going to cost more – enough to make some motorists fork over a dollar at each main toll plaza.
On Wednesday, the North Texas Tollway Authority formally approved raising the tolls on both roads, effective next September. Rates for TollTag users will increase a dime to 70 cents, and tolls for cash customers will go up a quarter to reach $1.
The board also approved a second, smaller rate increase that will take effect in 2010.
The tollway authority last raised its rates on the Dallas North Tollway in 1999 and on the Bush Turnpike in 2002. The agency's board of directors, faced with rising costs for planned projects and demand to build even more projects, had discussed toll increases for more than a year. In April, the board approved a policy calling for regular toll increases every five years, and that led to the toll increase approved Wednesday.
"We have to increase rates to not only maintain what we've got, but also to build for the future," said board vice chairman Jack Miller.
Revenue from the increases could raise $2 billion for road projects in the next 35 years. Projects could include the Trinity Parkway near downtown Dallas and a State Highway 360 extension in southern Tarrant County.
"We've been asked to do more to address the congestion issue," said Allan Rutter, executive director of the tollway authority. "This will do so in a way that addresses the concerns of a lot of people in our own region."
The agency offered some good news for motorists who slog through the tollway construction zone near downtown Dallas. Higher rates at the main toll plaza there will not take effect until construction in the area ends in mid-2008.
In 2010, tolls at main plazas will rise again slightly, going to 75 cents for TollTag users at each main lane plaza on the Tollway and Bush Turnpike. Cash customers will continue to pay $1.
The new rates apply at the tollway's three main toll booths, which are at Wycliff Avenue near downtown Dallas; Keller Springs Road in Far North Dallas; and Parker Road in Plano. The increases also apply at the Bush Turnpike's five main toll plazas – in Irving, Carrollton, Far North Dallas, Plano and Richardson.
Rates also will rise on all ramp tollbooths next year and again in 2010. Those rates vary, but most will rise by a nickel. The increases do not affect tolls on the Addison Airport Toll Tunnel or the Mountain Creek Lake Toll Bridge, which will remain at 50 cents.
"It really adds up," said motorist Michael Lovelace, who uses a mixture of freeways and city streets to get to his job near the tollway-Bush Turnpike interchange. "They don't pay me enough already."
The premium for using cash on tollway authority roads also is rising.
Cash users now pay a 25 percent premium at main tollbooths. That premium will rise to 43 percent next year, and the tollway authority hopes the higher cost will entice more people to get TollTags. During peak commute times, about 80 percent of all transactions recorded are with TollTags.
The board also has pledged to raise tolls on a more consistent basis after 2010. Under the guidelines for increasing toll rates, tolls would rise about 10 percent every five years.
"This allows us to plan regionally and for our customers to know what to expect," said Paul Wageman, chairman of the tollway authority board.
The new toll rates will not affect the new State Highway 121 toll road in Collin and Denton counties, which is owned by the Texas Department of Transportation. Portions of the all-electronic toll road have opened in Denton County, and tolls will be collected on those sections starting Dec. 1. State and regional leaders have set toll rates slightly higher on that and other state-operated roads.
Some motorists said Wednesday that they were not happy to have to pay more on roads that already have a lot of traffic.
"Do we really benefit from all that?" asked Brandon Finnigan, who said he used to commute on the tollway from the Frisco area to his old job at a car dealership in Dallas. He now works in real estate, which also requires a lot of driving. "The roads are nice, but there is always going to be traffic on them."
E-mail thartzel@dallasnews.com
© 2006 The Dallas Morning News Co
posted by Porkus Maximus Tex: at Thursday, November 16, 2006
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