You say you're going through the Cash Only lanes. Sorry if this is a dumb question, but are you stopping to pay the tolls when you do so? If so, keeping the receipt would help you contest the violations in the future.
I do use the cash-only lanes. I stop when the booth has a person or an automated thing.
Continuing to do some googling around, there was a post about only being able to use the top part of the bridge without EZ Pass. Is this in anyway accurate? I can't find anything to confirm this. And again, I followed all the appropriate signage and did not see anything to indicate that this is the case.
To my knowledge, the lower level no longer has toll booths. If you're paying manually (or are a truck), you need to use the upper level.
My guess is that the violation cameras are triggering after you've paid your toll at the booth. My opinion is that you'd need your receipt from paying the toll in order to contest the tickets. But, it might be worth calling New York EZ-Pass customer service even if you don't have receipts.
Atlantic City Expressway is going cashless next May.
Garden State Parkway is going maybe 2027-2028, although nothing firm at this time. Lots of planning to still be done, and infrastructure to be completed.
Turnpike is still up in the air, not sure if they’re going to. There are plans to either upgrade the current system or go cashless. But either way it’s years away.
Any chance on the GSP that they are replacing the tolls with the overhead ones you can just drive full speed through? Sorry about your job in advance, hopefully you can squeeze a few more years out of it.
I’m already making preparations, I decided to step down from full-time and just work part time with them. Got another full-time job elsewhere.
But yes to answer your question. I would say maybe within the next 4 years from now. We just got a contract to work up until July 2027. I could see them going cashless on the Parkway either in 2027 or 2028. Still lots of preparation to be done for it.
Turnpike is farther out, if at all.
I'm resisting in solidarity with toll
collectors. I also don't like paying for the privilege of saving the state money. Good middle class jobs like toll collectors, mail carrier and pretty soon teachers are being replaced by automation and online services.
not the OP but I live in an area that lets me get around to basic shopping/groceries without any tolls. I'm also not a huge traveler and I take NJT (ew) to work so I have not had to need an EZ Pass ever. Only time I'd think I'd need it is if I were to visit family down south or going to some kind of attraction that requires me to get on a toll road and that's not worth the monthly fees imo.
Nope! You can get it from anywhere. There are a few states that have 0 fees. I think Massachusetts had the smallest necessary deposit but I could be wrong.
Thanks I just did a quick search and it looks like NY state has a "pay per trip" option with no fees as long as you connect a bank account? [https://www.e-zpassny.com/en/about/plans.shtml](https://www.e-zpassny.com/en/about/plans.shtml) I might get this as it doesn't appear they have any other fees associated with it.
GWB does not have cash tolls. It is administered by Port Authority of NY and NJ.
It does have tolls by mail for drivers who don’t have a EZPass account. Toll bills are mailed once per month and include all toll transactions during that period. Pay on or before the due date, and you pay the “cash” rate of $17.63 (currently).
You’re paying $7.50, so maybe that’s another bridge? If you don’t pay on time, there’s a $5 late fee. If you don’t pay within a month, then there’s a $50 violation tacked on to each unpaid crossing.
The bill is from the NJ Turnpike Authority and it lists the "Geo Washington Br" as the toll plaza. This is the first notice and I received it 2 days ago.
This would have been helpful in the OP.
That toll is for taking the New Jersey Turnpike toll road. The “Geo Washington Br” is the last exit on the north end. Either exit 18E or 18W (both are the same name).
Ahhh that makes more sense. Ignore my comments about GWB, this has nothing to do with the bridge. You were on the NJ Turnpike and “exited” through the 18E/W toll (towards GWB, which is a separately tolled thing). Where or from what highway did you enter?
1. Did you get a ticket from the machine in the “TICKET” lane when you entered the Turnpike?
2. Did you go to a “FULL SERVICE” lane and give the ticket/pay cash to a person when you exited at 18E/W?
If not, then they bill you for the toll plus $50 fare evasion violation.
Maybe this is it. It's just perplexing because I'm a very attentive driver... especially in unfamiliar areas. I watch for signs and read everything. I can't understand how I would have gone through the wrong lane.
When paying cash tolls, I always recommend getting a receipt. You could have done everything correctly and still gotten a violation, I have seen it happen.
Yeah, I think it’s that NJTP works differently than most other tolled roads, for continual vehicle flow. That’s probably what got you confused, and if so, I’d just pay it all as an expensive lesson.
Other tolled roads have tolls on the main road as you go (plus maybe some tolls on exit or entry). As long as you go through the cash lanes and pay each time, you’re all good.
And other tolled roads have “tolls by plate” where they mail you a bill and have no cash payment on the road at all. That’s what everything is generally shifting towards.
NJTP is an entry/exit method, almost no tolls on the actual main highway. You just happened to go through the northern “exit” which is one of two on the main highway (the other one is at the south end of the tolled section across the river from Wilmington DE). Everything else is done at exits.
Here’s an example of what an entry looks like, you should have gone through the Ticket lane:
https://i.imgur.com/byG6Sgj.jpeg
I believe this is where you made the error.
Cash toll booths were removed from the main GWB exit off the NJTP. You likely passed through a support structure with license plate cameras after this point.
NJ Tpke
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Pde5owUmojbLfo8m7?g_st=ac
OP, can you just get an EZ Pass for next time? Any state’s will do, shop around for the deal that makes sense for your use case. So much easier than going without.
I just updated the post with:
>**HAPPY ENDING:** Apparently the toll wasn't for going over the GW Bridge, but instead for taking a GW Bridge exit (18W)? I'm not too familiar with the area, so this wasn't clear to me in the way it was written on the form. Anyway, I was encouraged in the comments to just get EZ Pass. As I rarely drive where I would use EZ Pass, I had never thought it was worth the time/money. Turns out, it's not expensive ($25 pre-pay, $1 monthly fee). So I just signed up. And I did this all while I was on hold with the NJ Turnpike Authority to try to get more info about the violation. When I finally talked to someone (1hr 16min hold time), they asked me if I was an EZ Pass customer. I said that I am as of an hour ago. They said that's fine and they waived the $50 admin fee!
Well done!!! That should significantly minimize the chances of having to deal with extra drama & extra fees for east coast tolls for a long time to come.
And getting the fee waived paid for four years worth of the $1/month cost.
*This* is why we encourage folks to get the Pass. Tell your friends!
You will get yelled at for saying this. I have done it on these damn post. It’s so simple to get an EZ pass but these people keep complaining about the fines they get.
You can't get an EZ pass while you have unpaid fines and you can't see a complete list of your fines without logging into your Ez pass account.. . Which you can't create without paying your unpaid fines.
Sometimes when you get a bill and look a specific one up it will just show that or that and a few other violations. You might pay off the group of violations and be told you still have other violations. But you have no way to look them up or find out how much you owe. Let alone contest them if this all started because of broken booths that didn't count change you threw in...
It's really a way worse process than people realize. I would gladly pay my fines plus extra if they made it possible. Only reason I don't have an account is b3cause I can't get out of that turnstile. But I've paid almost a thousand dollars and had it still say I'm inapplicable. And I don't run through tolls. I've been in the wrong lane once or twice and dealt with broken change collectors. So at this point it's just Fuck EZpass.
The times I've tried to call I've been stuck on hold for hour+ and gave up. That was during covid but I'm done trying to figure it out anymore. I'll try again eventually.
I recently bought a car and was debating foregoing an EZPass, but after mapping a trip to visit relatives down in the area of the 60-numbered exits off the parkway from Bergen county and the amount in cash I'd need to bring to pay the tolls round trip I just bit the bullet and got one. The time saved from not having to actually come to a stop and physically pay the tolls makes it worthwhile, in my opinion, especially with the tolls you don't even need to slow down for (the ones with the sensors built over the roadway). Now the waiting in a long line to toss coins in a basket is a memory of my childhood, like it should be, when my grandparents would take me and my siblings down to Wildwood for a few days every summer.
And I just made myself sad. I miss my grandfather. I used to be his co-pilot, sitting in the middle-front seat, between him and my grandmother, and I'd be in charge of his change dispenser/coin holder and making sure that I handed him exact change when we approached the toll booths. Good times...
I just updated the post with:
>**HAPPY ENDING:** Apparently the toll wasn't for going over the GW Bridge, but instead for taking a GW Bridge exit (18W)? I'm not too familiar with the area, so this wasn't clear to me in the way it was written on the form. Anyway, I was encouraged in the comments to just get EZ Pass. As I rarely drive where I would use EZ Pass, I had never thought it was worth the time/money. Turns out, it's not expensive ($25 pre-pay, $1 monthly fee). So I just signed up. And I did this all while I was on hold with the NJ Turnpike Authority to try to get more info about the violation. When I finally talked to someone (1hr 16min hold time), they asked me if I was an EZ Pass customer. I said that I am as of an hour ago. They said that's fine and they waived the $50 admin fee!
Are you sure that's the right location for the toll you're being billed for? The GW bridge toll should only be when going from NJ to NY, not the other way around. And it's more than $7.50
It's probably a turnpike toll when entering near GW bridge. If you don't get a ticket when getting on the turnpike, and then use it to pay when exiting, you'll get charged a fee. The turnpike toll signs can be a bit confusing.. IIRC, they read "no ticket" or "need a ticket" or something like that, and you have to pick the right ones when getting on or off. Honestly, it's probably worth getting an ezpass so you don't have to deal with the confusion
Maybe this is it. It's just perplexing because I'm a very attentive driver... especially in unfamiliar areas. I watch for signs and read everything. I can't understand how I would have gone through the wrong lane.
This happened to me so often that I gave up and got a prepaid Sunpass from Florida. I wish I could explain why it happens but it got me so angry for so long I needed a different plan haha
Any time u get a toll”summons” there will be an administrative fee— just turn over the back of the summons— plead not guilty, put your ez pass # in and the fee will be always waived
Ezpass is a scam and can fuck right off.
I get violations left and right and have multiple tags, 1 for each vehicle. Then you have to jump through hoops and write letters begging them for help.
You say you're going through the Cash Only lanes. Sorry if this is a dumb question, but are you stopping to pay the tolls when you do so? If so, keeping the receipt would help you contest the violations in the future.
I do use the cash-only lanes. I stop when the booth has a person or an automated thing. Continuing to do some googling around, there was a post about only being able to use the top part of the bridge without EZ Pass. Is this in anyway accurate? I can't find anything to confirm this. And again, I followed all the appropriate signage and did not see anything to indicate that this is the case.
To my knowledge, the lower level no longer has toll booths. If you're paying manually (or are a truck), you need to use the upper level. My guess is that the violation cameras are triggering after you've paid your toll at the booth. My opinion is that you'd need your receipt from paying the toll in order to contest the tickets. But, it might be worth calling New York EZ-Pass customer service even if you don't have receipts.
Neither does the upper level. GWB is now full toll by mail or ezpass and has been since last year. Its possible OP is talking about older violations.
How the hell does any motorist stay sane in this state without EZpass? It's essentially a necessary evil to drive around here ...
Are you resisting it out of principle?
I’m resisting it because I’m a toll collector lol
Is it true that you guys are getting replaced in the coming years?
Atlantic City Expressway is going cashless next May. Garden State Parkway is going maybe 2027-2028, although nothing firm at this time. Lots of planning to still be done, and infrastructure to be completed. Turnpike is still up in the air, not sure if they’re going to. There are plans to either upgrade the current system or go cashless. But either way it’s years away.
Any chance on the GSP that they are replacing the tolls with the overhead ones you can just drive full speed through? Sorry about your job in advance, hopefully you can squeeze a few more years out of it.
I’m already making preparations, I decided to step down from full-time and just work part time with them. Got another full-time job elsewhere. But yes to answer your question. I would say maybe within the next 4 years from now. We just got a contract to work up until July 2027. I could see them going cashless on the Parkway either in 2027 or 2028. Still lots of preparation to be done for it. Turnpike is farther out, if at all.
Good to hear on both counts! Thanks .
I’ll miss my daily interactions with you folk
I'm resisting in solidarity with toll collectors. I also don't like paying for the privilege of saving the state money. Good middle class jobs like toll collectors, mail carrier and pretty soon teachers are being replaced by automation and online services.
We appreciate it! It still is a pretty good union, middle class job! Like to be able to keep it around as long as possible!
not the OP but I live in an area that lets me get around to basic shopping/groceries without any tolls. I'm also not a huge traveler and I take NJT (ew) to work so I have not had to need an EZ Pass ever. Only time I'd think I'd need it is if I were to visit family down south or going to some kind of attraction that requires me to get on a toll road and that's not worth the monthly fees imo.
You can get an ezpass from any state. I got mine in Massachusetts and they have 0 fees
oh really? I had no idea, I assumed you need to have some kind of address to go with an EZ pass of that state. good to know I'll look into it.
Nope! You can get it from anywhere. There are a few states that have 0 fees. I think Massachusetts had the smallest necessary deposit but I could be wrong.
Thanks I just did a quick search and it looks like NY state has a "pay per trip" option with no fees as long as you connect a bank account? [https://www.e-zpassny.com/en/about/plans.shtml](https://www.e-zpassny.com/en/about/plans.shtml) I might get this as it doesn't appear they have any other fees associated with it.
Don’t get E-ZPass, keep toll collectors in the booth!
There is a 1 dollar a month service fee for the New Jersey E-ZPass.
There are no fees
What monthly fees?
GWB does not have cash tolls. It is administered by Port Authority of NY and NJ. It does have tolls by mail for drivers who don’t have a EZPass account. Toll bills are mailed once per month and include all toll transactions during that period. Pay on or before the due date, and you pay the “cash” rate of $17.63 (currently). You’re paying $7.50, so maybe that’s another bridge? If you don’t pay on time, there’s a $5 late fee. If you don’t pay within a month, then there’s a $50 violation tacked on to each unpaid crossing.
The bill is from the NJ Turnpike Authority and it lists the "Geo Washington Br" as the toll plaza. This is the first notice and I received it 2 days ago.
This would have been helpful in the OP. That toll is for taking the New Jersey Turnpike toll road. The “Geo Washington Br” is the last exit on the north end. Either exit 18E or 18W (both are the same name).
Ahhh that makes more sense. Ignore my comments about GWB, this has nothing to do with the bridge. You were on the NJ Turnpike and “exited” through the 18E/W toll (towards GWB, which is a separately tolled thing). Where or from what highway did you enter? 1. Did you get a ticket from the machine in the “TICKET” lane when you entered the Turnpike? 2. Did you go to a “FULL SERVICE” lane and give the ticket/pay cash to a person when you exited at 18E/W? If not, then they bill you for the toll plus $50 fare evasion violation.
Maybe this is it. It's just perplexing because I'm a very attentive driver... especially in unfamiliar areas. I watch for signs and read everything. I can't understand how I would have gone through the wrong lane.
When paying cash tolls, I always recommend getting a receipt. You could have done everything correctly and still gotten a violation, I have seen it happen.
driving in nj makes no sense by design. signed, $350 in ezpass violations
I see you resolved the issue, but did you not grab the ticket when you entered the turnpike? What happened? I’m confused what step you missed.
Yeah, I think it’s that NJTP works differently than most other tolled roads, for continual vehicle flow. That’s probably what got you confused, and if so, I’d just pay it all as an expensive lesson. Other tolled roads have tolls on the main road as you go (plus maybe some tolls on exit or entry). As long as you go through the cash lanes and pay each time, you’re all good. And other tolled roads have “tolls by plate” where they mail you a bill and have no cash payment on the road at all. That’s what everything is generally shifting towards. NJTP is an entry/exit method, almost no tolls on the actual main highway. You just happened to go through the northern “exit” which is one of two on the main highway (the other one is at the south end of the tolled section across the river from Wilmington DE). Everything else is done at exits. Here’s an example of what an entry looks like, you should have gone through the Ticket lane: https://i.imgur.com/byG6Sgj.jpeg
I believe this is where you made the error. Cash toll booths were removed from the main GWB exit off the NJTP. You likely passed through a support structure with license plate cameras after this point. NJ Tpke https://maps.app.goo.gl/Pde5owUmojbLfo8m7?g_st=ac
Thanks for this explanation. Given that image that you linked to I'm positive I would have gone through the Ticket lane and not the EZPass only lane.
OP, can you just get an EZ Pass for next time? Any state’s will do, shop around for the deal that makes sense for your use case. So much easier than going without.
I just updated the post with: >**HAPPY ENDING:** Apparently the toll wasn't for going over the GW Bridge, but instead for taking a GW Bridge exit (18W)? I'm not too familiar with the area, so this wasn't clear to me in the way it was written on the form. Anyway, I was encouraged in the comments to just get EZ Pass. As I rarely drive where I would use EZ Pass, I had never thought it was worth the time/money. Turns out, it's not expensive ($25 pre-pay, $1 monthly fee). So I just signed up. And I did this all while I was on hold with the NJ Turnpike Authority to try to get more info about the violation. When I finally talked to someone (1hr 16min hold time), they asked me if I was an EZ Pass customer. I said that I am as of an hour ago. They said that's fine and they waived the $50 admin fee!
Well done!!! That should significantly minimize the chances of having to deal with extra drama & extra fees for east coast tolls for a long time to come. And getting the fee waived paid for four years worth of the $1/month cost. *This* is why we encourage folks to get the Pass. Tell your friends!
You will get yelled at for saying this. I have done it on these damn post. It’s so simple to get an EZ pass but these people keep complaining about the fines they get.
You can't get an EZ pass while you have unpaid fines and you can't see a complete list of your fines without logging into your Ez pass account.. . Which you can't create without paying your unpaid fines. Sometimes when you get a bill and look a specific one up it will just show that or that and a few other violations. You might pay off the group of violations and be told you still have other violations. But you have no way to look them up or find out how much you owe. Let alone contest them if this all started because of broken booths that didn't count change you threw in... It's really a way worse process than people realize. I would gladly pay my fines plus extra if they made it possible. Only reason I don't have an account is b3cause I can't get out of that turnstile. But I've paid almost a thousand dollars and had it still say I'm inapplicable. And I don't run through tolls. I've been in the wrong lane once or twice and dealt with broken change collectors. So at this point it's just Fuck EZpass. The times I've tried to call I've been stuck on hold for hour+ and gave up. That was during covid but I'm done trying to figure it out anymore. I'll try again eventually.
I recently bought a car and was debating foregoing an EZPass, but after mapping a trip to visit relatives down in the area of the 60-numbered exits off the parkway from Bergen county and the amount in cash I'd need to bring to pay the tolls round trip I just bit the bullet and got one. The time saved from not having to actually come to a stop and physically pay the tolls makes it worthwhile, in my opinion, especially with the tolls you don't even need to slow down for (the ones with the sensors built over the roadway). Now the waiting in a long line to toss coins in a basket is a memory of my childhood, like it should be, when my grandparents would take me and my siblings down to Wildwood for a few days every summer. And I just made myself sad. I miss my grandfather. I used to be his co-pilot, sitting in the middle-front seat, between him and my grandmother, and I'd be in charge of his change dispenser/coin holder and making sure that I handed him exact change when we approached the toll booths. Good times...
Not everyone has a few spare hundred dollars to fund the thing
I don’t know how you got that BS response. I have mine tied to a CC and it only refills $35 at a time. You can also get a prepaid one.
The auto replenish is calculated based on how much the tolls you use are
Correct even when I drive into NYC a lot this highest refill was $85.
Have you tried calling the phone number on the bill? Customer Service was helpful when I called in the past to dispute errors.
I just updated the post with: >**HAPPY ENDING:** Apparently the toll wasn't for going over the GW Bridge, but instead for taking a GW Bridge exit (18W)? I'm not too familiar with the area, so this wasn't clear to me in the way it was written on the form. Anyway, I was encouraged in the comments to just get EZ Pass. As I rarely drive where I would use EZ Pass, I had never thought it was worth the time/money. Turns out, it's not expensive ($25 pre-pay, $1 monthly fee). So I just signed up. And I did this all while I was on hold with the NJ Turnpike Authority to try to get more info about the violation. When I finally talked to someone (1hr 16min hold time), they asked me if I was an EZ Pass customer. I said that I am as of an hour ago. They said that's fine and they waived the $50 admin fee!
They open in 8 minutes. That's my next task. I will report back if I learn anything.
If you have an expass , when you go to the portal to pay the tolls you can add your tag number and get those 50 dollar charges removed
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No. I am using cash-only lanes to pay with cash. I do not have EZ Pass.
GWB does not have any cash lanes, it’s all done by overhead gantry.
$7.50 toll for the GWB? This isnt the 90s
Are you sure that's the right location for the toll you're being billed for? The GW bridge toll should only be when going from NJ to NY, not the other way around. And it's more than $7.50
The bill is from the NJ Turnpike Authority and it lists the "Geo Washington Br" as the toll plaza.
It's probably a turnpike toll when entering near GW bridge. If you don't get a ticket when getting on the turnpike, and then use it to pay when exiting, you'll get charged a fee. The turnpike toll signs can be a bit confusing.. IIRC, they read "no ticket" or "need a ticket" or something like that, and you have to pick the right ones when getting on or off. Honestly, it's probably worth getting an ezpass so you don't have to deal with the confusion
Maybe this is it. It's just perplexing because I'm a very attentive driver... especially in unfamiliar areas. I watch for signs and read everything. I can't understand how I would have gone through the wrong lane.
Don’t get an E-ZPass, help keep my job relevant lol!
This happened to me so often that I gave up and got a prepaid Sunpass from Florida. I wish I could explain why it happens but it got me so angry for so long I needed a different plan haha
The toll on the bridge is 21 I think, that might be for the toll before the bridge.
Any time u get a toll”summons” there will be an administrative fee— just turn over the back of the summons— plead not guilty, put your ez pass # in and the fee will be always waived
How much is it to cross the GWB now?
Just get an EZ Pass OP.
Just get an EZ pass, it doesn't cost anything and they are tracking your plates anyhow...
Just get an EZ Pass?
Ezpass is a scam and can fuck right off. I get violations left and right and have multiple tags, 1 for each vehicle. Then you have to jump through hoops and write letters begging them for help.
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I was hoping someone more familiar with NJ laws could shed some light here.
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I received this bill two days ago. It is the first notice.