Pennsylvania Turnpike tolls are set to rise again

Pennsylvania Turnpike toll rates are set to rise starting Sunday for the 16th consecutive year.

Here’s what motorists can expect:

• A 5% increase.

• For passenger vehicles, the most common toll will increase from $1.80 to $1.90 for E-ZPass customers and $4.40 to $4.70 for Toll by Plate.

• For tractor-trailers, the most common toll (for vehicles weighing between 11,001 and 14,000 pounds) will increase from $14.40 to $15.20 for E-ZPass and $29.40 to $30.90 for Toll by Plate.

• All new toll rates will be rounded up to the nearest dime.

• E-ZPass users will continue to save the most money on tolls — at nearly 60%.

• The turnpike and PennDOT can suspend vehicle registrations of owners with four or more overdue Toll by Plate invoices or $250 or more in unpaid tolls or outstanding toll invoices.

• The 2024 increase was previously approved by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission on July 18,2023.

• Pennsylvania’s per-mile toll rates are lower than national toll averages, remaining in the middle of the 47 toll roads in the United States.

Why is this happening

• Act 44, a 2007 law designed to help fund statewide transportation projects without raising taxes.

The cornerstone of the plan was converting Interstate 80 into a toll road along with creation of a lease agreement between the Turnpike Commission and PennDOT. But the plan hit a snag when the Federal Highway Administration denied the plan for I-80.

As a result, a default clause written into Act 44 took effect and required the Turnpike Commission to pay PennDOT $450 million a year, funded mostly through bonds. To date, the commission has paid $7.9 billion, accumulating more than $14 billion in debt, records indicate.

• The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission will continue to raise tolls through 2051.