EZ Pass latest problem
 

It has been found that the EZ pass billing has been charging some motorist to much money Click for article. :(

Yup! They got me...
 

at the Hooksett off-ramp. Charged my Class 1 transponder with a Class 2 toll. I wrote them an email but they haven't rebated me yet.

So far so good for me, but I haven't been through the Hookset toll in a while. Mostly Hampton and the Spaulding Tpk tolls.

It works both ways
 

This fall, I took a trailer through the Hookset toll eight times, and only was charged the extra axle fee once. Ain't automation wonderful! :rolleye1:

Trailers...
 

The Rochester Toll seems to miss the extra axle too when going through with a trailer. Dover Toll is pretty consistent at getting it right though...

ooops
 

I hope no one from the toll commission is reading this. I'd hate to have them fix that, er.... problem

I have putting off signing up for the speed-pass. At the tolls it seems to cause more problems, between the oblivious driver not noticing that they are in the well advertised speed-pass lane and making the quick lane change, to the people who drive 50 MPH right up to the speed-pass lane. Do you receive the discount like when purchasing tokens? As you can tell I am a token fan!

I am also a token fan but tokens will no longer be accepted after Jan.1st.NH EZ-pass will only give you a 30% discount vs the 50% for tokens.I got my transponder in June but have not used yet while I use up my 4 rolls of tokens.

Problems with the lanes
 

I'd like to know who is the rocket scientist that first figured out the EZ-Pass lanes should be in between exact change and human toll takers. Then - who let that stupid idea last so long. At the Hooksett tolls, you sit in long lines - with people zipping back and forth between the two outside sets of lanes - and when you finally get close, the EZ-only lanes are mostly empty. Even at the last minute then - there are still people figuring out all of a sudden that they don't have exact change and have to cross in front of ez-users to get to the inexact change lanes. Someone should make a comedy movie about what goes on there. What's wrong with the DMV that they can't figure out that there is something wrong with what they first set up.

When it was first introduced,there definetley was alot of confusion.It has settled down now and works great.

Changable lanes
 

While it may work better now, I would disagree with pm203 and say it still ain't working great. Just as lg says above the problem is with lane segregation and separation of EZ Pass from all others. The problem as I see it stems from the changable nature of the leftmost lanes. Sometimes they're northbound and other times they're southbound (changed as need for traffic flow). Without this consideration they should make leftmost lane(s) the EZ pass lane(s) with exact change and human toll takers then in the next lanes from left to right. Perhaps when they get enough hardware to implement EZ Pass in more lanes this can happen and still allow the flexible lanes. For that matter they should try to eliminate the toll booths for the EZ Pass and let then drive at near full speed under a "toll bridge" (full lane widths) as is done in other states.

I know that there is visual indication at the EZ-Pass lanes to let you know that your transponder has been recognized, but I wish that the transponder gave an audio indication as well. I know that my father-in-laws transponder in Florida has that feature and I think it might eliminate the small, albeit frustrating, lag time that happens when people are looking for the visual ok to move forward.

It could be worse guys. IN NY state, the 5mph limit through the EZ Pass lanes defeats the whole purpose of the lane. Cash toll payers move through quicker. :)

Eliminate Tolls - Raise The Gas Tax...
 

to replace those revenues. Connecticut did it years ago and nobody's complaining. It makes for safer and quicker traveling.

Toll Troll
 

Pennsylvania is the same way with the 5 MPH EZPass lanes -- and MOST are shared lanes -- meaning that you can use EZPass or not -- further defeating the entire purpose of EZPass. Some states just don't get it.

I'm with Senter Cove Guy -- eliminate tolls altogether (although it'll never happen in PA, NJ, etc.). Then again, seems to me that Connecticut is the biggest "trouble spot" on my entire drive from PA to the Lake -- so it's six of one, half a dozen of another. Maybe the lack of toll revenue in CT is the reason they can't seem to COMPLETE THE WORK ON I-84!!!! Can't wait to drive through that again next week! ;)

An alternative to 84
 

We've discovered a pleasant way to avoid 84 altogether, and perhaps you'd like to try it?

From NJTP, take 287 N to 87 N (NYThruway Ext.). Follow all the way to the Troy area, and take the access road to Mass Pike. Get on Mass Pike and follow it all the way to 495. The rest is the same.

It adds a few miles, but the road conditions are vastly improved, traffic is rarely an issue, services are quite convenient, and I usually arrive at my destination 1/2 hour or more sooner, and quite a bit less stressed!

Another Alternate to 84
 

As long as you are not towing a boat, I've found that taking the NY Thruway across the Tappan Zee Bridge to 287 and then the Merritt Parkway cuts 11 miles off the 300+ mile commute. I used to take the Saw Mill Parkway after the Tappan Zee to 684 and then 84 in Danbury. Also I miss the dreaded stretch of 84 thru Waterbury and the never-ending construction. If you take the Merritt to its end in Meriden, CT, you take 91 North to 84 East just above Hartford, and then like Pepper I take the Mass Pike to 495. The only time to avoid the Merritt Parkway is during morning rush hour if you are heading south and of course in the afternoon going northbound. Normally if we leave Alton Bay around 10 am and come down the Merritt mid-afternoon, the slow traffic is on the northbound side and we sail through southbound. Another plus of taking the Meritt over 84 is NO TRUCKS!!

Captain Bonehead also drives a car
 

Lakegeezer,
I feel your pain. Recently on the Everett Tpke. we wound up behind Capt. Bonehead at the Bedford Toll. There were NH plates on the car so he should be aware of EZ Pass after all these months, and he proceeded into the EZ Pass Lane and then opened his window to deposit the toll. When he saw there was no basket, he got out of the car and stood their gesturing to the attendant in the next booth to come and get his money. She waved him on and he got back in and headed north. HE DID THE EXACT SAME THING AT THE HOOKSETT TOLL after cutting in front of us again at the last minute. The Yahoo again got out of the car and tried to hand the money to the attendant in the next booth and it was obvious from what we heard that the guy didn't speak or understand English. I wonder if he got a fine for driving thru both tolls without paying within 30 minutes. Neither of the toll attendants abandoned their posts to come over and collect the money while he stood outside his car -- this happened on a Sunday afternoon with considerable traffic.

Eliminating tolls with a gas tax would never work, the 95 stretch (Hampton tolls) is too short. Most of the people driving through NH wouldn't stop for gas. That would kill the hacks in the NH government, knowing all those people are passing through without paying.

No ones complaining? I'd rather they do away with the gas tax and put the toll booths back in. Many people would have less taxes to pay as they do not use the toll road.

Plus we would get more money from those that are going to our casino's :rolleye2:

CT, MA and Everything in Between
 

Over the years, I think I've tried every possible route. And the one you mention is the one my brother and I unintentionally took in the spring of '04, when we missed the I-84 exit on the NY Thruway. Realized we'd yacked our way past the exit and said, "What the heck, let's avoid CT altogether and hit the Mass Pike."

Not a bad drive -- although a bit longer than the CT route. But we had to try it, and we were quite proud of having made the trek and avoiding CT.

That being said, in four or five round trips this year so far, CT has not presented any major delays -- just the usual construction- and accident-induced sluggishness. There...I've just jinxed myself for next Friday. :(

Lets recap....he had NH plated,means most likely a NH license. Now if you remember, you can get a NH drivers license without being able to read, write or even speak English. Need I say more?? Now whats wrong with THAT picture?? How can you head for the correct lane if you have no idea what the signs say?? :eek:

It's getting better ... errr ... mebbe
 

Funny to note that on the way back this weekend "Mee" noticed that the "any vehicle" part of the EZ pass signs had been deleted. I had a pic I was going to post re: the confusing signage but never got around to it. The gist is that the EZ Pass signs used to say EZ Pass, any vehicle, ... The average idiot could easily interpret this to mean truely ANY vehicle (his/hers included), not just cars, trucks, ??? with EZ Pass. No doubt we'll see a 0.03159 % improvement in the coming weeks. ;)

GH - We can't match your experience ! :eek: We did see 1 person pull up to the EZ Pass lane and upon finding no collecting cup proceed to pull though and try to back up into a proper toll lane :eek: We only saw it once though ... :coolsm:

[QUOTE=Pepper]
From NJTP, take 287 N to 87 N (NYThruway Ext.). Follow all the way to the Troy area, and take the access road to Mass Pike. Get on Mass Pike and follow it all the way to 495. The rest is the same.

QUOTE]

If it happens to be on a Friday and you are worried about the traffic on the Mass Pike and 495, you can continue up I87 to Rte 787 to the Troy exit, which is Rte 7, heading east. Rte 7 turns into rte 9 in Vt, taking you through Benninton, Brattleboro, Keene, and onto I89 into Concord.

Heading west from this area to points west of Albany, I would highly recomment that routing. When we lived in Clifton Park NY (just N of Albany), it was four hours door to door C. P. to Alton Bay. Pleasant ride, easy traffic, and nice places to stop and eat.