State waiving SunPass late fees for now

Frustrated motorists using the state’s toll roads are getting a break. State authorities announced Thursday they are putting the brakes on late fees and penalties after backups and crashes in the upgrades to the SunPass billing system.

Last week, the newly upgraded SunPass website, mobile app and hotlines crashed because they were overwhelmed by users who had no access during a weeklong overhaul, according to Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise, which operates SunPass.

The glitches seem to be continuing into this week.

“I share the frustrations with our customers over the rollout of [the upgraded system] and find it unacceptable,” said Mike Dew, state Transportation Department secretary.

Late fees will not be imposed, he said, “until the system is providing the benefits and ease of access that our customers deserve and expect.”

The SunPass system has accumulated toll charges for customer accounts since the system maintenance period began on June 1, officials said.

Once the system has been thoroughly tested, state officials will announce a timeline for the resumption of fees or penalties for delinquent accounts.

SunPass will soon begin posting toll transactions. In order to better serve the customer and avoid unintended consequences, individual account charges will be posted gradually over a number of weeks, officials said.

The upgrades undertaken this month included:

Transponder purchasing and activation online, through the call center, kiosks and mobile apps.

Account updates, changes, replenishment, reloads and cash payments.

Invoices, traffic ticket payments, registration and stop-payment functions.

SunPass also opened three new walk-in centers in Tampa, Ocoee, and in Doral at 7902 NW 36th St., Unit 203.

Sun Sentinel staff writer Wayne Roustan contributed to this report.