Tolls going up on several spans connecting NJ, Pennsylvania

YARDLEY, PA. (AP) >> The bistate agency that operates river crossings connecting New Jersey and Pennsylvania announced Monday that it will raise tolls next month and again in 2024, the first such increases in 10 years.

The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission cited the decline in passenger car traffic and toll revenue caused by the coronavirus pandemic, along with the burden of maintaining 13 toll “free” bridges with revenue from its toll bridges.

Starting April 11, car tolls increase from $1 to $1.25 for drivers with an E-ZPass account and from $1 to $3 for car drivers who pay cash at seven bridges: Trenton-Morrisville (Route 1), New Hope-Lambertville (Route 202), I-78, Easton-Phillipsburg (Route 22), Portland-Columbia (Routes 611, 46, and 94), Delaware Water Gap (I80), and Milford-Montague (Route 206) bridges.

On the new Scudder’s Fall bridge, the E-ZPass rate for passenger vehicles stays at $1.25, but the cash toll increases from $2.60 to $3 on April 3.

In 2024, drivers who use E-ZPass would see tolls rise by 25 cents to a $1.50, and the Commission’s E-ZPass commuter discount program will be eliminated at all eight of the commission’s toll bridges.

Officials said more than 75% of the Commission’s toll transactions are done by E-ZPass.

Similar to other toll agencies, the commission saw traffic and revenue fall off as travel restrictions were put in place and more residents worked from home. The commission’s net toll revenue for 2020 was $14.48 million less than had been projected in a traffic engineering report, officials said.