Pennsylvania Turnpike starting final phase of All-Electronic Tolling

Taylor Spirito
·2 min read

The Pennsylvania Turnpike has begun rolling out the final phase of its All-Electronic Tolling (AET) implementation.

According to a press release, this final stage includes relocating tolling points in eastern Pennsylvania and building new highway-speed collection points between interchanges using Open Road Tolling (ORT), which gets rid of traditional toll plazas or tollbooths.

ORT means tolls with continue to be paid electronically, but cars can drive at highway speed beneath overhead structures called gantries that are located between exit and entry points to the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Gantries have the capability to identify and classify cars as well as process E-ZPass and Toll By Plate payments.

A press release said ORT is being implemented because it:

  • Fulfills customer expectations for seamless, convenient travel.

  • Is safer for Pennsylvania Turnpike drivers and its employees and is better for the environment.

  • Allows new access points (interchanges) to be added more easily and at a lower cost, enhancing mobility and reducing traffic at interchanges and on connecting roads.

  • Will help save the Pennsylvania Turnpike more than $75 million a year.

“Open Road Tolling is the culmination of the PA Turnpike’s decade-long journey to modernize operations and meet customer expectations for seamless, nonstop travel,” said Pennsylvania Turnpike CEO Mark Compton. “ORT is a safer, more convenient way for customers to travel and represents the future of toll collection worldwide.”

19 gantries are being constructed east of the Reading Interchange (Exit 286) to the New Jersey line and along the entire Northeastern Extension (I-476), according to a press release.

Pennsylvania State Police have begun slowing traffic at these construction sites and will continue to do so over the next several months on Sunday evenings during off-peak hours, officials said.

The eastern ORT system will be functioning in 2025. The ORT system for the central and western Pennsylvania Turnpike is also expected to be built in 2025 with an anticipated go-live date of 2027.

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