SEATTLE — Tolling on one of the state’s busiest bridges is set to begin Thursday, but less than a quarter of drivers using it have the sticker that automatically bills them.
The Washington state Department of Transportation hoped to have about 50 percent of Highway 520 floating bridge commuters with their “Good to Go” sticker installed by Thursday, yet only 20 percent have it so far, said Patty Rubstello, director of toll system and engineering for the highway.
We’re “not sure if people are waiting until the last minute,” Rubstello said Wednesday.
Rubstello said the state witnessed similar rates when tolling was introduced on the Tacoma Narrows Bridge.
At nearly 215,000, plenty of stickers have been issued, Rubstello said, but the state is not sure if daily commuters are using them yet.
The bridge will be the first in the state with all-electronic tolling rather than cash-collection tollbooths. The “Good to Go” pass allows automatic billing to prepaid accounts.
Those without the sticker will be billed by mail for the toll — plus a $1.50 surcharge. If the toll is not paid 14 days after the bill arrives in the mail, a second toll fee is charged plus $5. Should the toll not be paid 80 days after it initially was issued, a civil penalty plus $40 is charged. After that, the state sends the account to collections.
The tolling kicks in at 5 a.m. Thursday on the bridge crossing Lake Washington. It’s part of a plan to ease congestion and pay for a replacement bridge that will cost more than $4 billion. Pontoons already are under construction to replace the 48-year-old bridge with a new six-lane bridge.
“We’re got everything lined up and ready to go,” Rubstello said.
Rates are based on the time of day and range from $1.10 late at night to $3.50 at peak times, in each direction. Those rates are for drivers who have a state-issued Good to Go sticker that works like a debit card.
Rubstello said the department is expecting traffic on the I-90 bridge and I-5 and I-405 to be affected by the toll, but the impact may not be clear this week because of there are fewer commuters due to the holidays.
Tolling was originally slated to start this past spring, but glitches with the electronic system set up by Texas-based ETC Corporation delayed the start.
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