Tom Warne Report, 2 March 2013
SEATTLE – Washington’s DOT is ready to put a stop to drivers who refuse to pay their tolls, which has caused the state to lose millions of dollars to violators. Drivers on the SR 520 and the Tacoma Narrows bridges have blown off nearly a quarter million penalty notices for not paying tolls, amounting to almost $10 million in penalties. The drivers are pay-by-mail users who get a toll bill after the bridge cameras take a picture of their license plate.
The DOT hopes to collect on their delinquency by charging the missed tolls plus a $40 penalty through the DMV. “If you ignore that, then what we’ll do is put a registration hold on your vehicle,” said Craig Stone with WSDOT. “So if you have to get it re-registered in the next year, you’re going to have to clear that toll and that penalty.”
The state also plans to send the unpaid toll bills to a collections agency. A recent tolling study showed about 1,350 vehicle owners will receive registration holds by the end of this year. Transportation officials say they will recover more than the cost for additional enforcement.
I like WSDOT’s systemic approach to managing this problem. The solution is transportation related and will both improve compliance and collect the fees and outstanding tolls in the process. We’ll watch and report on this as implementation progresses. TW
