WSDOT: SR 520 Bridge Tolls Start In December

Tolls on the State Route 520 Bridge have been delayed again and again, but the Washington State Department of Transportation told KIRO 7 on Thursday that drivers should get their Good To Go passes ready -- tolling is now scheduled to start in December.

KIRO 7 Reporter Michelle Millman's first question to a WSDOT representative Wednesday morning was "are you sure these tolls are going to start in December?" to which the answer was yes.

Tolling was originally scheduled to begin in mid-April, but various glitches with the tolling system pushed the start date to May or June. When the company in charge of the tolling system was unable to fix the issues in time and the problems persisted, the date was pushed back again, much to the ire of Gov. Chris Gregoire.

WSDOT told Millman on Wednesday that during the last several months they've had an expert review panel look at the tolling system and have performed an internal audit. The agency said it knows a lot more about the system now than it did two months ago.

WSDOT said it has worked out some of the kinks at this point.

The system will allow tolls to be collected from vehicles traveling at highway speeds, either via windshield stickers (re: Good To Go passes) or license plate recognition photos, which will generate bills that are then sent to drivers.

Extra testing of the system is scheduled to take place between now and December.

WSDOT said it has set up about 100,000 new Good To Go accounts for the 520 Bridge.

The tolls will be variable. A crossing between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. will be free, while crossings during peak hours will run as high as $3.50.

KIRO 7's Essex Porter is working on getting more information on the tolls, which we'll post here later this afternoon.

Related:

Bay Area Bridge Tolls Didn't Reduce Traffic; WSDOT Says 520 Bridge Tolls WillSR 520 Tolling Frequently Asked Questions | WSDOTSR 520 Bridge Toll Rates | Washington State Transportation Commission