In a surprising turn of events relating to E-ZPass, some individuals from New Jersey are facing challenges. A handful of drivers from New Jersey discovered that they were inaccurately billed at the same rate as commercial trucks instead of regular non-commercial vehicles when crossing the George Washington Bridge within the last year. Curious about the disparity in fees? Instead of a maximum of $14.75, which is already a significant sum, the overcharge could reach as high as $140.
As reported by NorthJersey, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey identified 1,891 instances of overcharging on the four bridges it manages, including the George Washington Bridge, between June 2022 and June 2023. Considering that this figure represents less than a fraction of a percent of the 122 million drivers who passed through Port Authority tolls in 2023, it’s evident that this is not a widespread issue. Nevertheless, for an individual unexpectedly shelling out $140 to cross a bridge unknowingly, it poses a significant problem. Luckily, the Port Authority has reimbursed those affected by this mistake.
However, since E-ZPass deducts funds automatically from your bank account to replenish your toll balance, detecting an error can be challenging—especially if you eschew paper statements—due to the infrequent monitoring of online E-ZPass account statements by most individuals. Consequently, many motorists may not realize the mistake until they observe a substantially larger deduction by E-ZPass from their account.
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What caused this issue? Several potential explanations exist. It could be a flaw in the toll booth sensors that read the E-ZPass tag and assess vehicle size simultaneously. Alternatively, in dense traffic conditions, drivers might pass through the toll booths in such close proximity that the sensor interprets two car lengths as one (some drivers may even attempt to bypass the toll by tailgating another vehicle through the gantry). Nonetheless, a definitive reason for the overcharging remains elusive.
Compounding the issue, these overcharges coincide with escalating financial demands placed on New Jersey residents. New York is gearing up to introduce its inaugural daily congestion charge for all vehicles entering Manhattan below 60th Street next month. Consequently, in addition to the prevailing tolls, numerous non-commercial vehicles will face a fee of $15 to access New York during designated times of the day. This is surely not the most opportune moment for toll technologies to suddenly malfunction.
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