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navegator's avatar
navegator
Explorer
Dec 28, 2015

Toll boot warning

When approaching toll booths in Mexico, pay attention to where the plume or barrier is.

If the barrier is before the booth, do not even go near, these are reserved for the cargo and passenger buses that have a something as a debit card that gets scanned and the boom opens, the lanes are impossible to get out off.

Look for the plume or barrier behind the booth those are the ones you pay, we nearly entered one of the prepayment lanes, was able to back a couple of feet with the toad and move left.

On the toll roads try to avoid the pavement and aim for the potholes, there seems to be more holes that blacktop.

navegator
  • Casetas Llaves are sometimes sign labeled as such. They are the card-only casetas.

    POTHOLE IN SPANISH

    Bachi

    BAH-chee

    ANY TYPE OF STANDING WATER

    Charco

    Got a complaint about a toll road that resembles swiss cheese? Fill out a complaint form with a Green Angel. A legitimate complaint is a genuine pain-in-the-ass. Toll road operators amd gas station owners hate them. Many hours of paperwork and hassles for them. They may even ---- off the toll road administration to the point where they make an effort to fix the road.
  • Mex: The condition of Hwy 15 in Sonora is at it's worst in many years. El Imparcial continues to make headlines on this subject. Complete with pictures. Nothing happens. I really don't think the toll road operators give a d--n.

    Moisheh
  • In the eastern part of the US you can hardly go anywhere without paying tolls. They have a system called Easy Pass or something like that. Vehicles have some sort of electronic device that is detected as they drive through the toll lane - they can go through pretty fast. I think Mexico now has something similar though I know next to nothing about either system. There are lanes that are reserved specifically for these vehicles and only these vehicle so they do not have to slow down as they zip through the toll. Other vehicles in that lane would slow the whole process. You must watch carefully as you approach the caseta de cobro to make sure you are in the correct lane. The "Easy Pass" (or whatever it is called in Mexico) is usually the right lane. Aiming for a middle lane is usually a safe bet.

    We drove the new west loop of the Arco Norte yesterday. It is a disgrace. It is 2 lanes of rough surface. They are doing the earth moving work for another 2 lanes - I hope they have different contractors. The road surface does not have a lot of potholes yet but you can see cracks almost everywhere on the road - and the cracks are big enough that we feel every one of them as we bounced down the road. The only explanation I can come up with is they could have been in such a rush to open the road they did not put a finish layer on top of the base layer - sounds ridiculous but I can't believe what we were driving on was finished. We got of Arco Norte and drove west on a nice smooth 15D - at least it was nice most of the way to Morelia where we got off. Parts of the rest of the Arco Norte (especially the entrance/exit ramps) was also in rough shape.

    We drove the entire Arco Norte from Puebla to the 15D connection and the toll for our Bus towing our car was $693mx ($40+ ? US) - the rate for 4 ejes on the rate sign.
  • Telepeaje Dinamico, IAVE, OHL Mexico and many others provide on line services for their prepay autopistas.

    They are not only used by truckers but also by company employees and individuals. You can add money to your account on line via credit/debit and receive a factura (official invoice) via email.

    The publisher I work for has all the reps company cars in the program. It avoids the employees from having to carry cash or worry about not having enough for the tolls.

    The same goes with gasoline. Many Pemex franchises have the same program. This allows companies to better track their fuel consumption and keeps employees from using their cars for personal use when not authorized.

    They are both good things and I've never heard a complaint. There will always be a time, like any internet or automated service to have a problem all of which can be fixed.

    All the toll booths I have used for work are well-marked and the big blue signs that say "multimodal" will take cash. Some booths still take credit/cards but it depends on the concession.

    Just goes to show you that in most cases if not all, the libres are just as good and as safe in some cases better than toll roads.
  • Just goes to show you that in most cases if not all, the libres are just as good and as safe in some cases better than toll roads.


    When the cuota is close to 300 miles from one place we know we can stay and the next place we know we can stay - and from the same place to the same place on the libre is longer by quite a few miles - and we know it will take us most of daylight hours to cover the 300 miles - we are going to take the cuota every time. But if the distance is short and we know where we are going we will take the libre every time. Lots of variables in decision making.

    Recently from Cholula to Oaxaca the cuota took almost 8 hours to cover 235 miles. The libre is about 20 miles further and we are told takes several hours longer as it travels through mountains with narrow curvy roads passing through many villages. In this case we are told the cuota is a much better road - and a better choice for most - especially those with large RVs towing a car behind - or a pickup towing a large trailer.

    In other cases we know of routes we prefer to take where the libre is shorter and a better road than the cuota going from the same point A to the same point B. It all depends on where you are going and the available routes - road conditions - number and cost of tolls - type of vehicle - and any number of other factors. We took the Arco Norte around Mexico City because who wants to drive in Mexico City with a motorhome - once was enough.
  • MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
    Casetas Llaves are sometimes sign labeled as such. They are the card-only casetas.

    POTHOLE IN SPANISH

    Bachi

    BAH-chee

    ANY TYPE OF STANDING WATER

    Charco

    Got a complaint about a toll road that resembles swiss cheese? Fill out a complaint form with a Green Angel. A legitimate complaint is a genuine pain-in-the-ass. Toll road operators amd gas station owners hate them. Many hours of paperwork and hassles for them. They may even ---- off the toll road administration to the point where they make an effort to fix the road.



    crazy in Spanish is loco. Filling out reports? While on vacation? Pain in the ass? yep.