Pennsylvania Turnpike preparing to go cashless

It won’t be long before cash is a thing of the past when getting off the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Beginning in late 2021, drivers will pay through their E-Z Pass or have their license plate recorded and a bill sent to them, according to a news release.

All-Electronic Tolling has been tested at sites in the western and eastern parts of the turnpike. The success of those toll booths has led to a timeline for the rest of the 552-mile road.

“This schedule is possible due to the success of our AET pilot locations,” turnpike commission CEO Mark Compton said in the release. “Data from these pilots is clear: Performance is on par with projections after 58 million AET transactions have been processed to date at four cashless-tolling locations.”

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So far, AET is used at:

• Over the Delaware River at the New Jersey border in Bucks County (2016)
• The Beaver Valley Expressway (Pa. Turnpike 376) in Beaver and Lawrence counties (2017)
• The Findlay Connector in Washington and Allegheny counties (2018)
• The Keyser Avenue and Clarks Summit tolling points on the Northeastern Extension in Lackawanna County (2018)
• Gateway Toll Point near Ohio in Lawrence County (2019)
• The Greensburg Bypass (Pa. Turnpike 66) in Westmoreland County (2019)

Between now and late 2021, overhead steel structures will be installed along the turnpike to replace the tolling booths that are currently in place. Tolls will still be collected between entry and exit points, but it will be done at highway speed.

Existing toll plazas and tollbooths will be decommissioned and demolished.

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“Cashless tolling has been adopted by dozens of agencies across the United States because of the improved safety and mobility it provides,” Compton said. “Everybody pays electronically, so there’s no need to stop; everyone benefits from the convenience of uninterrupted travel.

“Plus, cash and E-ZPass customers no longer need to dart across tollbooth traffic to reach their lanes.”

When the tollbooths go, so will the people who run them. Compton said there will be no layoffs before Jan. 1, 2022. Collectors will stay on the job to staff toll plazas and offer help to customers during the familiarization period.

“As we move toward AET, we will continue to do all we can to help transition impacted employees – whether that means moving to another position here at the PTC or elsewhere,” he said.