Toll roads

[ThomasandMaliaV]

Hello, we are first time RV'ers doing a long distance trip to the coast of Maine from Wisconsin. We have been out locally in our 38ft. class A RV but never cross country. Our question concerns the Tollways we will encounter. What is the average cost of a toll and do they count the axles on a dingy? Is there a way to find out the cost of each toll? Thank you for your assist! Tom and Malia Virant in "The Spruce Goose".

[DrewE]

HadEnough wrote:
"Move out west" is the best advice there is on this thread. Lol

Hardly any tolls.

But it's coming. As populations increase, more tolls go up.

"Move out west" doesn't help too much if you're thinking of vacationing in Maine. Maybe "vacation out west"? But then you miss out on lovely New England...so perhaps "Move out west and drive east through Canada?"

[VoodooMedicineM]

definitely investigate
Last year I took a toll road in Oklahoma and did not realize it was CASH only.
2 tolls $20.00 each. Luckily I had the cash.

[DaveG39]

Bridges around San Francisco are around $20.00 if towing a car but only charged one way.

[HadEnough]

"Move out west" is the best advice there is on this thread. Lol

Hardly any tolls.

But it's coming. As populations increase, more tolls go up.

[ohhell10339]

Move out west--there are almost no toll roads!!! (Just a very few in California, and with tolls like 50 cents and $1.)

The few times I've traveled back east, I was always able to avoid toll roads, even if I had to go on US 40 or 50 or 1. Those slightly slower routes were always more interesting anyway.

Getting socked for forty or fifty bucks just to drive on a freeway--when I am already paying gas taxes--would make me want to march on the state capitol with a flaming torch.

[Mortimer_Brewst]

Wow, lots of misinformation on road quality. As someone who lives in the Chicago area, I can tell you that the interstates that are toll roads in Northern Illinois are in much better shape than the ones that aren’t. I-90 for example, was just rebuilt between O’Hare Aiport and Rockford. Given your location I would recommend taking the Tri-State Tollway (I-294) around the city. Try to avoid morning and evening rush hours. It’s possible to avoid tolls completely and go through the city, but it would potentially be a lot slower with rougher roads.
FYI, IPass works anywhere EZPass is used and Illinois accepts EZPass. In Illinois you set up an online account. The Illinois Tollway Authority owns the IPass transponder, and you have to put down a deposit on it. I’d recommend searching around for the best deal.

[HadEnough]

Also... How is everyone dealing with these toll by plate entrapment setups throughout the country if they travel full time?
.
By the time I get my mail traveling, I'm ending up paying $20 to drive on a single road once. With a truck camper.

I've just changed my gps to avoid tolls as it's cheaper than $20 to go the long way. It's also more efficient time wise because it takes 10 minutes to avoid the toll but more than 10 minutes to read the bill and pay it.

Anyone else upset over these?

[jerryjay11]

rr2254545 wrote:
Set your GPS to avoid toll roads - I long ago determined in most instances I could afford the extra fuel by the savings in tolls

Ditto on avoid toll roads especially around the Chicago nightmare.

I'd be taking RT 70 myself. If you have a GPS for RVing then set to avoid tolls. Stay away from NYC instead use 87/287 to the Tappan Zee Bridge or 84 to Newburgh-Beacon Bridge. 84 will run you through Connecticut to Massachusetts then North 95. You'll still hit some tolls, but not as many and the drive would be less stressful. The bridges would have tolls going East but not returning on the West end of your trip.

At least that is what I would do. I'm sure others will have their druthers.

[rr2254545]

Set your GPS to avoid toll roads - I long ago determined in most instances I could afford the extra fuel by the savings in tolls

[wski]

Trackrig wrote:

sch911 wrote:
Every state and toll road is different. You'll have to research each state's web sites. The one single best thing we did was to get an Illinois I-Pass. You pay with a CC online. This got us significant discounts on most all tollways, and more importantly allowed us to use the Fast Pass lanes. They are compatible with most other toll passes like EZ-Pass out east except for Florida.

After doing that area of the country last summer, above is what we should have done. And yes, they charge you for the toad axles.

If you get anywhere around Chicago, they have the worst toll roads I've ever seen. I don't know what they do with the toll money, but the roads haven't seen any of it in 50 years.

Bill

Yes the roads are terrible in the Chicago area and the entire state of Illinois. The DW and I can always tell when we are in Illinois by the condition of the roads.

[dons2346]

In addition to counting the number of axles some toll roads also have an extra charge for "over height" vehicles

[Trackrig]

sch911 wrote:
Every state and toll road is different. You'll have to research each state's web sites. The one single best thing we did was to get an Illinois I-Pass. You pay with a CC online. This got us significant discounts on most all tollways, and more importantly allowed us to use the Fast Pass lanes. They are compatible with most other toll passes like EZ-Pass out east except for Florida.

After doing that area of the country last summer, above is what we should have done. And yes, they charge you for the toad axles.

If you get anywhere around Chicago, they have the worst toll roads I've ever seen. I don't know what they do with the toll money, but the roads haven't seen any of it in 50 years.

Bill

[Dutch_12078]

I agree with Drew, a NY E-ZPass would be a good idea. It's accepted in 14+ states and some of the international bridges into/out of Canada. The transponder is free with no monthly fees with an automatic replenishment account, and you do not have to be a NY resident to get one.

[DrewE]

Yes, the axles on a towed vehicle do count, at least in most cases. The ways vehicles are classified for toll purposes is far from uniform.

I don't think there is such a thing as an average cost across all toll roads, or at least not a useful one. The fees vary quite a bit, and in different proportions for different vehicle classes. Most toll roads do have toll calculators online if you search for them; for example, here is the one for the New York Thruway.

In this particular case with the towed you'd presumably be a class 4H (four axles, tall vehicle), and the toll from Albany (exit B1) to the PA state line beyond Buffalo would be $65.70 cash or out of state EZ-pass. If you drove the motorhome and car separately, the tolls would be $34.75 + $17.60, or $52.35. If you have the NY state EZ-Pass with the Motorhome Thruway Plan, the toll (with the car in tow) would be $30.54. If you don't have an EZ-pass transponder already and are planning on going through New York, it is in my opinion well worth considering this latter option, for rather obvious reasons.

[sch911]

Every state and toll road is different. You'll have to research each state's web sites. The one single best thing we did was to get an Illinois I-Pass. You pay with a CC online. This got us significant discounts on most all tollways, and more importantly allowed us to use the Fast Pass lanes. They are compatible with most other toll passes like EZ-Pass out east except for Florida.