Mass EzPass in Florida I need an alterative

[happily single]

Just an FYI. I was logging into my Massachusetts EzPass today and noticed that their system is going to be down this weekend. So anyone looking to add a rental car plate to their Massachusetts EzPass will be out of luck this weekend.

With that said, I recall seeing a post a while ago about there being a Sun Pass machine in at the airport where you can purchase s temporary sticker pass? Am I making this up? I'm trying to avoid having to pay the high rental fees for using their transponder

 

[erionm]

Just an FYI. I was logging into my Massachusetts EzPass today and noticed that their system is going to be down this weekend. So anyone looking to add a rental car plate to their Massachusetts EzPass will be out of luck this weekend.

With that said, I recall seeing a post a while ago about there being a Sun Pass machine in at the airport where you can purchase s temporary sticker pass? Am I making this up? I'm trying to avoid having to pay the high rental fees for using their transponder

You are thinking about the Visitor Toll Pass system that's available at MCO.
https://visitortollpass.com/

 

[EACarlson]

VTP is the way to go. I choose to use it every time over my own EZ Pass compatible transponder. $10 dollar deposit for the hangtag and it gets credited back to you 3 or 4 weeks after return. Much better than the $22 I got charged to get my transponder shipped to me by the rental car company the one time I forgot it.

 

[jmasgat]

I have a NY EZ Pass, and don't even bother to add the rental car plate. I use the pass successfully with no issues. I have actually had issues trying to add the plate , because the rentals are fleet vehicles usually registered/covered elsewhere and so it won't let me add them. Maybe MA EZ Pass is different.

 

[Lewisc]

NY EZ Pass tells you NOT to add rental cars, just use the transponder. States differ.

 

[Jimsig]

I had an issue once with MA EZ-Pass with a rental. I rented a car in August and put the cars info in my account. I used the pass over a long weekend in a few different states. Had no issues, after the trip I deleted the info from my account as I had done previously with rentals. About 3 weeks later as I went through a MA tool booth and got the yellow light where it says to contact them. I called them and they said they noticed usage with a plate that wasn't on my account and they gave me the make model and plate number and it was the rental. They told me they wanted to make sure my transponder was not stolen. I told them that I had added the car before I used it and had since deleted it. They then said they had no record of me having that car on my account but it was not an issue and all tolls were paid. Went through a toll later that night and the light went green.

 

[_19disnA]

Each state seems to have different rules on how their EZpass works. I have never bothered to add a rental car to my account and never had any issues. What I have found is that some states have different rules for how you get charged. If you get your device from certain states, then tolls in that state are free and you only pay the monthly maintenance fee. Every state does NOT work that way so I would recommend buying a device from the state where you most often travel. The various websites for EZpass imply that everyone charges the same way, but I have found that is NOT the case. I specifically got rid of the device from one state where I used to live since the way they charged was totally different from other states. If you move to another state and/or change where you most often drive, it is a good idea to see which device will result in the lowest cost.

 

[MikeF;NJ]

Each state seems to have different rules on how their EZpass works. I have never bothered to add a rental car to my account and never had any issues. What I have found is that some states have different rules for how you get charged. If you get your device from certain states, then tolls in that state are free and you only pay the monthly maintenance fee. Every state does NOT work that way so I would recommend buying a device from the state where you most often travel. The various websites for EZpass imply that everyone charges the same way, but I have found that is NOT the case. I specifically got rid of the device from one state where I used to live since the way they charged was totally different from other states. If you move to another state and/or change where you most often drive, it is a good idea to see which device will result in the lowest cost.

Tolling practices vary, not only from state to state, but also by various agencies within a state. My experience was with NJ and NY. I got my EZ-Pass from NJ Turnpike Authority. I could get various discount programs on the roads they controlled (NJ Turnpike, Garden State Parkway, Atlantic City Expressway). If I wanted discounts for the bridges/tunnels to NY, I would have had to get my device from the Port Authority of NY and NJ. IIRC there were at least two other tolling authorities in NY state (Triboro Bridge and Tunnel/MTA, and I think NY DOT for the New York Thruway, possibly more). Most of these authorities didn't offer reciprocal EZ-Pass discounts. (Though some did at one point.)

 

[_19disnA]

^^ I agree. Anyone who uses EZpass in multiple states should look into the various options available regarding tolls/discounts/etc. The individual state websites seem to imply they all work the same, but in reality I have found they do NOT.

 

[happily single]

Update: I went ahead and reserved the VisitorPass. We only found one location to pick up the pass, but it was quick and easy. However, drop off was a bit of a pain. We remembered to grab it from the rental car, but didn’t see a drop box anywhere after exiting the parking garage. I assumed there would be a drop box on the second level near the airline checkin counters, but there were not. My son had to run downstairs and find the box

 

[leebee]

My EZPass is from Maine and I never add rental cars to it. I have used it successfully for many trips to Florida, and just used it this weekend on a rental car here in Maine. No problems!

 

[jec6613]

Tolling practices vary, not only from state to state, but also by various agencies within a state. My experience was with NJ and NY. I got my EZ-Pass from NJ Turnpike Authority. I could get various discount programs on the roads they controlled (NJ Turnpike, Garden State Parkway, Atlantic City Expressway). If I wanted discounts for the bridges/tunnels to NY, I would have had to get my device from the Port Authority of NY and NJ. IIRC there were at least two other tolling authorities in NY state (Triboro Bridge and Tunnel/MTA, and I think NY DOT for the New York Thruway, possibly more). Most of these authorities didn't offer reciprocal EZ-Pass discounts. (Though some did at one point.)

Port Authority NY/NJ and the MTA are the big ones, they at one point (and may still) collected more tolls than every other road toll authority in the US combined, by sheer size they more or less forced the US to standardized toll tags.

But NJ also has another one for the AC, Burlington County, and Cape May areas, NY has the NYS Bridges Authority, the NYS Thruway Authority (the reason the Tappan-Zee isn't closer to NYC is to get the toll revenue into the Thruway and not into the Port Authority), plus a Buffalo, Niagara, and Thousand Islands tolling for crossings into Canada. 12 of the 38 toll agencies that use E-ZPass are in NY or NJ.