Electronic Tolling Moves Forward in 2010

Motorists traveling on the Dallas North Tollway (DNT), Mountain Creek Lake Toll Bridge (MCLB) and through the Addison Airport Toll Tunnel (AATT) will begin seeing the first steps of the conversion of those roadways to all-electronic toll collection.  The conversion is slated for the fourth quarter of 2010.

Benefits of only accepting TollTags and ZipCash include faster travel times, improved safety, better fuel efficiency and better air quality.

Once converted, these facilities will no longer accept cash payments in the toll lanes. After the conversion, tolls must be paid with a TollTag account or through the NTTA’s ZipCash program, the “Drive Now, Pay Later” method used to replace cash collection.  Currently, the Sam Rayburn Tollway (SRT), Lewisville Lake Toll Bridge, DNT’s Wycliff Avenue Plaza and most recently the President George Bush Turnpike (PGBT) operate as roads that do not accept cash payment in the lanes.

As construction has wrapped up on the conversion of the PGBT to all-electronic tolling, the conversion plans for the remaining roads have been finalized. Due to its length and constrained right of way, construction related to the conversion of the DNT will be segmented into four parts. Segment One includes the ramp plazas from Mockingbird Lane to Interstate Highway (IH) 635. Segment Two consists of the main lane and ramp plazas north of IH 635 to the PGBT. The main lane and ramp plazas between the PGBT and SRT make up Segment Three. Main lane and ramp plazas north of SRT are in Segment Four. In most cases, existing toll plazas will be replaced with new gantries like the ones used on SRT and the DNT’s Wycliff Avenue Plaza. 

Initial construction will be isolated to the new main lane gantries in Segments Two and Three in the second quarter of 2010. Construction affecting the ramps in Segment Two is also scheduled to begin around this time. Construction affecting ramps in other segments is currently scheduled to begin later in the year. Once the new equipment is in place in late 2010, the DNT, AATT and MCLB will convert to all-electronic tolling using TollTag and ZipCash and eliminating in-lane cash toll collection at the same time. Additional construction will take place during the first half of 2011 to complete the demolition of the old plaza structures.

The conversion of the DNT to a TollTag- and ZipCash-only facility will take 12-14 months of varying levels of construction activity during which the NTTA will provide as much information as possible through various outlets, including the NTTA Web site, local media and this e-newsletter. Your patience during this process is appreciated. Once the project is complete, there will no longer be a need to “stop to pay” on any road in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.