The Pennsylvania Turnpike’s massive changeover to open road tolling is nearly complete. Open road tolling will launch system-wide on Jan. 3.
“We will flip the switch literally and will be tolling you at the gantries on the main line, no longer at the interchange,” said Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission CEO Mark Compton. “Cash has not been taken on the system for the last several years. This really is just a change in where we’re tolling.”
Drivers will not notice any physical changes at first. The large gantries over the toll road have been in place for several months in New Stanton. They hold several cameras that overlook the turnpike. The cameras capture the front and back of every passing vehicle.
Officials estimate it will be a couple more years before all the toll booths across the state are demolished and removed.
Open road tolling has already been operational in the eastern part of the state for the last couple of years.
The Pennsylvania Turnpike said the cost of the project, stretching from Somerset to the Ohio state line, is $134 million.
That covers the full project, including building the system, eliminating the toll booths and reconfiguring the interchanges. The work is e...