I drive in and out of the city almost daily and I do not understand why anyone would willingly choose to pay the tolls in cash?
EZ-Pass is free and it saves so much time. It also reduces traffic for everyone.
Someone, please please please tell me why everyone doesn't have it?

They don't have credit cards.

i don't believe THAT many people don't have credit cards.  although we don't drive as much (only on the weekends), the EZ pass is such a blessing.  before we got it, we had so many issues with cash.  sometimes the counter isn't right so a $0.75 toll turns out to be $1.30.  really stupid, probably done on purpose by the state of NJ.

We just drove back into the city from the north along the Palisades Parkway. The delay onto the GWB was caused by most drivers waiting for the cash lanes. Zipcars come with EZ-Pass so we breezed by and thought the same thing you did as we saw the lines. Could it be privacy concerns? Nah, I think one big reason is inertia. If it ain't broke...

Contrast this to the following 4/28/03 Gotham Gazette story, which says tokens accounted for only 8% of total fare usage before they were abolished in 2003.

gothamgazette.com/articl…

"New Yorkers already seem to have accepted the demise of the token.  Few people spoke out on its behalf at hearings this winter on the fare hike, and indeed, by early this year, tokens were already being used for only eight percent of all rides."

I think another reason is that there's a larger percentage of infrequent/casual visitors driving into the city than who are willing to stick out the line because the benefits of EZ-Pass do not outweigh the "hassle" of signing up for one and "maintaining it."  That's my reason. I don't own a car and before signing up for Zipcar I rented infrequently at best. I would sit through the cash lines because it didn't seem worthwhile to hold on to an EZ-Pass for the one or two times a year I'd rent a car.

Now that we've got Zipcar we've been using it quite a bit, and the EZ-Pass is a real time saver.

Well most NYCers only drive in and out of the city on the weekends.    I think it's for people that travel a lot between states (NY/NJ)

no car, of course

Meg, EZ Pass isn't free.  You're charged a fee for it.  Look at your invoice.  It's there.  It's a source of outrage.  Also, some people like actually having contact with a person every day.  Also, EZ-Pass is an invasion of privacy.  Who knows how the information you generate could come to be used?  There are many reasons not to have EZ-Pass, and believe it or not, in many locations, EZ Pass lanes don't help traffic flow, but worsen it because of the location of the lanes and changing lanes at the last minute.  I have EZ-Pass, but I didn't for years, for all of the above reasons, plus many more.  

Is it faster, in general?  Sure.  But that doesn't mean it's the right choice.

I don't buy the invasion of privacy argument. regardless of the lane you use, cash or ez pass a picture is taken of your car. Everytime you use an ATM, picture taken. You probably have your picture taken 10+ times a day, so if you think you're hiding from the government by not using ezpass, think again!

It's just so frustrating to me to sit in traffic for 30 minutes to find out that the reason I'm sitting in traffic is because no one can get to the ezpass lanes because people are sitting there waiting to hand over their cash. ARGH.
Forget the congestion tax, bloomberg should make evevryone get ezpass!

I don't have an E-Z Pass because

...

*cough*

...

well, I don't have a driver's license.

That makes no sense, why should everyone get an EZ Pass and btw, it's not free, you gotta pay for it.  Seeing as how they have cash lane and EZ Pass lane, I doubt you're sitting in traffic if everyone is going to the appropriate lane.  Relax, it's not that serious.  Besides, most NYers tend to stay in NYC unless it's the weekend or a holiday.

Rose F: Depending on the toll you're paying (like the GWB approach from the Palisades), it's quite possible for a road to be jammed up by people waiting to pay cash.

not sure if this still happens, but in the early days of EZ, they would ticket you if you sped from one toll to another... they calculated the time between tolls and the speed you must have been traveling. you got a ticket in the mail. a serious WTF moment.

eliza: that does not happen on EZ Pass. There was a rumor that that would be implemented but I've never gotten a ticket and I drive on the Turnpike a lot and I'm WAY over the speed limit.

Meg: EZ Pass costs $1 a month regardless of usage. For some people, that's apparently too much. My mom wanted to cancel hers for that reason (it USED to be free when it started).

Rose: The cash lanes for the Lincoln Tunnel ALWAYS crowd out the EZ Pass lane when it's crowded, which is M-F 4:30 pm to 8:30 pm, despite the DEDICATED EZ Pass lane on the left. The cash f*ckers just jump on that until they get close to the tolls, then try to veer into the cash booths but get stuck.

rocky - i'm talking way back, like in the first month of their existence. i saw the tickets, they sucked! it happened in delaware, my friend got 3 all at once. i think they stopped doing it shortly after (because obviously, who wants to pay a service which will monitor and ticket your speed) but i hear it in rumor-form all the time still.

Meg, you don't have to "buy" the invasion of privacy argument.  I'm simply saying that regardless of any and all other surveillance of me by this government, I don't have to make it easier for them.  

And when and if any goverment  tries to force people into getting EZ-Pass, they will have riots and lawsuits on their hands.  I'm sorry getting stuck in traffic is so stressful for you.  I don't like it either, but I wouldn't dream of imposing laws on people in the interest of convenience.

That is a great queston. Why make your life easier, and your drive quicker??? It's a crazy idea

Thank goodness I don't drive, I let my friends drive me around :)

That's all well and good but doesn't really address the true nature of Meg's question. :-P

Even though they charge you a $1 a month just to have the EZPASS, isn't that offest by the lower fare of the EZPASS lane?  I don't remember the amount, but at most tolls that are say $4.00 for cash isn't it like $3.50 for EZPASS, etc?  If they are still doing this, then the added benefits to saving money and saving time seem like a no brainer to me too.

It would also cut down traffic if more people used public transportation.

I'm with MIchael C on this one.  Since I don't have a drivers license, I'd look pretty silly running past toll booths with an EZ pass taped to my head.

John, they do discount the toll for EZ-Pass users, but the $1/month fee was not something that was part of the original EZ-Pass discussion.  It was never a quid pro quo/offset issue--the fee was simply imposed on users a few years ago, to much frustration.  It isn't the fee, but the way in which it was gone about that offended people.

Ryan: it would look even sillier if the pass did not register and you had to run backward and forward to get it through.

Rocky: But then you'd get 2 points and a summons.

EZPass is disorganized and has been billing my brother for bills in my name that I paid. He's been trying to fix it for three years and it doesn't get resolved. In the interim he doesn't have an EZ Pass. It's just plain stupid.

I like having the EZ Pass, and I like others not having it. And if everyone had one, I think there will still be traffic (all the lanes turned into EX Pass lanes - the wait, pass not read, etc.).

Here, here, Christine Q.  

I appreciate having it, and it's worth the itty-bitty fee.  I like not fumbling for cash while driving (or making sure I even have cash!), and I like getting through faster.  That goes double for the Verrazano!

Many of you that complain about the $1.00 monthly service fee charged by the New York Ezpass Service Center and New Jersey Ezpass Service Center. If you don't want to pay the fee, just get your Ezpass from somebody else. You are NOT REQUIRED to order your Ezpass from your home state or the toll authority in your local area. You can order your Ezpass from ANY of the states and/or toll authorities that are part of the Ezpass system, and not all of them charge a monthly fee. The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission doesn't charge this fee, so I got my Ezpass from them. They own all of the New Jersey/Pennsylvania bridges from the US-1 bridge in Trenton up to the New York state line. You can sign up online at ezpassdrjtbc.com.

Just remember, if you are a commuter, and you receive a discount, then you have to get your Ezpass from the and/or toll authority that owns the facility that use everyday.

When you drive to New Jersey to bury the body of a rival gang member, it leaves an electronic trail that can ruin your alibi.

haha, Brian S, I have actually heard news stories in which women have caught their husbands cheating (or vice versa) because of the EZ Pass bill...

I haven't read every post. However, I read a news story that claimed that EZ pass would charge extra money on tolls (only by pennies - the whole Superman III theory), assuming people wouldn't check or notice the couple of cent discrepancies on their bills.  It's like giving someone else your credit card and giving them the freedom to do what they please.  Essentially they assume that everyone is moronic and no one will ever catch on to this, and if they do it would be an innocent mistake.

Ditto Jessica G's point.

All of that being said I am pro EZ. Go figure.

I am so FEED up with EZ PASS that I will be getting rid of it.  The machines make to many mistakes sending out nonsense violation notices stating that you went through with out paying-essentially the machine did not read the EZ Pass---this occasionally happens and is a big pain.   you then have to prove were not your fault---time spent ans postage spent for a toll that you tried to pay with EZ PASS.  Waste of time.!!!  The should rename it Hard Pass!

i EZ Passed your mom on the West Side Highway last night.  it was hot.

I don't own a car. I do have a friend that has a car and he claims that they double and triple charge him with his EZpass. He got so fed up that he stopped using it.

Also, EZpass makes your car more vulnerable to break-ins. It just a pain.

I haven't had any problems with mine and I think it should be mandatory.  After waiting 2 hrs at the GWB toll plaza approach one day it all became crystal clear.

Cash lanes = doom.