NJ Turnpike Toll Hike

Welcome to New Jersey. Now pay up.

If this is 2003, it must cost more to drive on the New Jersey Turnpike. It is, and it does.

The toll road instituted the second phase of a toll hike on New Year's Day that hit cash-paying motorists with a 17 percent increase. That comes on top of a 20 percent increase two years ago.

The increase is less for E-ZPass users: 10 percent during rush hours and on weekends, and 5 percent during off hours. They were hit with an 8 percent increase in 2001.

"It's ridiculous," grumbled Bill Batchelor of Sicklerville as he stopped for a quick bathroom break at the Grover Cleveland rest area Wednesday morning. "We're just paying for these rest areas they're fixing up. Is there something here that justifies a 17 percent increase? If there is, please show it to me."

It now costs cash-paying car drivers $6.45 to drive the entire length of the toll road, from Exit 1 near the Delaware Memorial Bridge to Exit 18 in Ridgefield Park. A standard 5-axle truck will pay $23.20 for the same 118-mile trip.

"It's stupid, especially with all the financial problems people are having," added John Caine, a former Newark, N.J., resident who now lives in Harrisburg, Pa. "They don't need that money. Tell them to get it from somewhere else."

Turnpike authority officials are quick to note that both increases were approved under the administration of former Gov. Christie Whitman. The revenue from this year's increase is already earmarked to help pay bonds used to finance work authorized under Whitman, spokesman Joe Orlando said.

Traffic was light on the toll road Wednesday, when 430,400 vehicles were projected to use it. Including New Year's Eve, more than 1.1 million vehicles were projected to use the turnpike over the holiday.

Glaring overhead message boards cut through the rain and fog with the message "New toll rates in effect." Don Drake and his wife Jeanne didn't need the sign to know they had to dig deeper to drive the length of the highway. The Springfield, Mass., couple was en route to Vero Beach, Fla.

"They're going to do whatever they want," he said of turnpike officials. "It's a major north-south road; you have to use it."

But not everyone was railing against the increases. Carlos Lopez of Philadelphia was in a more forgiving mood on the first day of the new year.

"It's got to go up to keep up with the times," he said. "Nothing is cheap anymore, bro. This ain't 1955."

Article continues below

---

advertisement

---

Author: Copyright 2002 by <a href="http://www.NBC10.com">NBC 10</a>. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.