NEW YORK (WKBW) — New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced cashless tolls on the New York State Thruway will go live on Friday night, more than a month ahead of schedule.
The transition will take place during the overnight hours of Friday, November 13 into Saturday November 14 at 58 tolling locations across the NYS Thruway's 450-mile ticketed system.
"At the time cashless tolling goes live, cash will no longer be accepted as a form of payment at toll booths and printed toll tickets will not be handed out," a release states.
NY E-ZPass has created a new app to help drivers with the transition. Drivers will be able to manage E-ZPass accounts, find and pay Tolls by Mail invoices, and get important account alerts for tolls accrued at Thruway, MTA, and Port Authority tolling sites.
"The completion of this exciting new project will help Thruway travelers save time, as well as reduce traffic, cut greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality all along the system," Governor Cuomo said. "Getting this cashless tolling system done and getting it done early shows that -even in these trying times - New York will never stop innovating and never stop building for its future"
Phase one of the project is now complete, phase two will now begin which includes the removal of existing toll plazas.
"During the interchange reconstruction, drivers will continue to travel through existing toll lanes at reduced speeds without stopping until the booths are removed and road reconfigurations are complete. Drivers should expect traffic shifts and must use caution around the toll plazas during this time, as these will be active construction zones. The posted speed limit when traveling through the toll lanes will be 20 MPH," a release states.
Vehicles with E-ZPass are automatically charged and vehicles without E-ZPass will have their license plate image captured and a toll bill mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle via Tolls by Mail.
You can sign up for an E-ZPass here or by calling the E-ZPass Toll Free Customer Service Center at 800-333-TOLL (8655).
For more information on cashless tolling you can visit the NYS Thruway Authority's website here.
In a statement to WKBW on the impact of cashless tolls on toll collectors, a spokesperson for the NYS Thruway Authority said:
"Currently, there are approximately 1,100 toll collectors, the vast majority of which are part-time (900 part-time – 200 full-time). All of them are NOT being laid off.
Since 2018 when cashless tolling was first announced, more than one-third of impacted full-time staff were/are eligible for retirement. Also since that time, the Thruway Authority has offered impacted toll collection staff numerous career development and training opportunities, including tuition assistance, CDL certification and Civil Service Exams for placement in other positions within the Thruway and the state."
