Tuesday, November 21, 2017
Is cashless tolling really a trap?
From CBS 2:
Countless drivers are reporting that ever since cashless tolling took effect at Metropolitan Transportation Authority bridges and tunnels, they have gotten hit with a mountain of fines.
As CBS2’s Jessica Layton reported, cashless tolls have transformed the speed to get through the city’s congested bridges and tunnels. But now, commuters are complaining cashless tolls have caused them countless problems.
Since cashless tolling took effect, surprise fines have been piling up on unsuspecting drivers like never before.
Tom Reilly of Staten Island said at one point, he owed $2,200.
“It’s amazing,” he said.
Reilly did not know his debit card information was not up to date until he got hit with more than a mortgage payment’s worth of violations at the Hugh Carey Tunnel. And in another dilemma, drivers do not know when their account has a low balance – because those convenient indicators are gone with the new gantries.
13 comments:
Incidentally by the cross bay bridge, drivers go really fast coming off it heading into Broad Channel. I don't know if its a way to trick the scanners there, but it's become a real dangerous path to cross by the first intersection. For a while there was a state trooper vehicle stationed in the middle of the road.
As for this being a ticket trap, of course it is. Everything involving tech can be easily manipulated and abused. When you have people manning the booths like it was before, there is a verifiable, physical transaction of cash or card or Even Ez Pass, and everything is accounted for. With Mario's son's stupid embrace and blind worship of tech and convenience and his disassociation with his constituency being that he has town car police protected motorcades, of course he and the idiot MTA panel sees nothing wrong with this or the horrible ramifications that have now manifested with this procedure of sanctioned graft of the public
It's only been two months!! How is this possible?
Remimnds me of the guy with all of the fines from the Newburg bridge. Apparently he hadn't seen a statement in months and got hit with fines. Wake up idiot, it isn't for free!
http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/story/news/local/new-york/2016/09/25/lost-uncollected-thruway-tolls-spike/91092314/
The penalty fees run up fast. I just paid $39 for a one day trip upstate. I will keep my traveling to a minimum.
The EZ Pass website is a piece of shit. It was last updated ten years ago. There's no clear indication when you log in that there's a problem, and you can't update your credit card info on there if you've been hit with a fine - you have to call them to take care of it.
I don't even know where I would go to check if I have a cashless toll balance.
What? This is ridiculous. I commute from Queens to CT every day over the Throggs Neck. My CC was stolen and shut down by the CC company a few months ago. I got a new card. EZ-Pass texted, emailed, and mailed me notices that my old credit card was rejecting the month's charges. I was able to sign in to the website, update my CC info, and make a one-time payment to bring my account back into good standing. The website is old, yes, but it's easy to use.
I got notified the same day that my card was rejected. How do you ignore text messages, emails, letters to your home, and phone calls for long enough to rack up 2.2K? Unless you moved and changed your number to avoid paying tolls (and probably other costs)...
>The penalty fees run up fast. I just paid $39 for a one day trip upstate.
That's not penalties, that's just the general tolls for the trip. It's like they want to make sure poor people can't afford to travel.
>I will keep my traveling to a minimum.
And I think that's their goal. Wouldn't want us serfs up and leaving.
I never had an EZ pass because I cross a bridge once a year. Crossed RFK, and it took 47 days for bill to arrive. I was anxious because what if bill got lost in the mail. But the speed is amazing. Never thought the toll booth collectors would be obsolete
I decided to take a simple hike in the Palisades 2 weeks ago to see the leaves. Via the Triborough and GW bridges the round trip toll with EZ pass was $24.01. I'd do it more often but this toll is ridiculous.
Wait until they replace metrocards with an ezpass system
All call BS on this guy's story. When I've had a credit card cancelled I get noticed quickly.
And like, he didn't notice that he wasn't getting charged for toll? Come on.
"Wait until they replace metrocards with an ezpass system"
For that they are going to use biometrics and facial recognition--again for our own good and security. Miss a alimony or child support payment, owe tickets. owe money or have a warrant they will be able to track you through every station, corridor, doorway and street corner in real time. -Milliseconds.
This is all going to be linked together, the cars, tolls, busses, subways, airports, cabs, ATMs, street corner lights and rammed down out throats at gunpoint.
Its very real and coming.
The new cameras have the low light resolution, processing & networking speeds and memory to do it.
One is right in saying computers are taking over the work.
I don't care what any of you snapperheads say, removing the toll collectors and their salaries is a move I never thought I'd live to see in NYC.
Bravo!
To Henry22-
I would hold that Bravo for when the savings from toll collectors and their salaries either 1) make the bridge roads better or 2) tolls drop. Until then, we just laid off a bunch of people and are still paying through the nose!
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