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What is Distance-Based Tolling? The NTTA will roll out new toll rates on Sept. 1 that follow a more consistent, distance-based structure. In other words, the new rates will be more closely aligned to the miles driven. The further you drive, the more you pay per trip.
Currently, the Dallas North Tollway (DNT) and President George Bush Turnpike (PGBT) toll rates are uniform with each other, but not priced based on miles driven. This means, on Sept. 1, when the toll rate increase is implemented, some tolling locations may see larger increases than others. There are also a few locations where the TollTag rates will decrease—most notably, at the main lane plazas on the Bush Turnpike in Garland and Irving.
Rates on the DNT and PGBT are scheduled to go up by 3.5 cents per mile. Rates on the Sam Rayburn Tollway will go up an average of four percent since they were initially set at a higher regional rate as outlined in the project agreement with the Texas Department of Transportation.
The NTTA’s toll roads are not an entry-and-exit based system where users are tracked where they enter and exit with tolls levied when the driver exits. Rather, the rates are based on the “influence distances” between ramps and plazas. Influence distance is the longest distance a motorist would travel before encountering another ramp or plaza. Rates on Sam Rayburn Tollway already use this formula.
For main lane plaza rates, the influence distances are appropriately placed on the main lanes where the next main lane influence distance begins (i.e., they don’t overlap). For entry/exit ramp rates, the distance is measured to the cross street just before an entrance ramp after an exit ramp.
For more information on the new toll rates, visit www.ntta.org. Be sure to also read about where your tolls are going in this month’s Driving Forward. You can read the article here.
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