Toll Road

[Barney Fife]

We're at the Fort right now. Coming home Sunday. Instead of I-4 and I-95, I'm pondering taking that toll road for a change. Where will we hit I-95 and about how much will it cost me? I don't have E Pass or anything so I assume they'll send me a bill in the mail?
Is it worth it? I'm just looking to save time and hassles.

 

[bama_ed]

Barney,

Most of the comments we get about I4 congestion are regarding Monday-Friday drive times particularly morning and evening commute times. You leaving on a Sunday might avoid it but that's up to you.

You can travel East on the toll roads to the Cape Canaveral area and pick up I95 going north for cash. The Florida Turnpike (which includes related non-Turnpike toll roads) website has a calculator: http://floridasturnpike.com/TollCalcV5/index.htm

The calculator is not perfect. To leave Disney, come out on Osceola Parkway (the highway from Animal Kingdom toward ESPN) and keep heading east. Get up on Hwy 417 heading east (toll road) and follow it around south of the Orlando Airport and then turn east/right on Hwy 528 headed toward the Cape.

The alternative is to head off Disney Property via your favorite route and get on I4 headed North/East and pick up Hwy 528 directly east. It passes North of the Orlando Airport all the way east to I95. Using the link above the calculator for 3 axles (my guess) was $6.75 for cash.

Again, on Sunday you might be okay but you can take the toll road for cash and it is $6-7.

Hope you had a great visit. Have a safe trip home.

Bama Ed

 

[tiggerdad]

I can't compete with Ed when it comes to specifics. The man is a marvel.

Exactly what he said...or typed as the case is.

 

[peg110]

I too will not compete with Ed, but what I will add, is that when I left the Fort on December 2, 2016, my GPS (well Google maps on my phone) steered me to the "Toll Road" as I was heading back home to NEPA. Forgetting that I did not set it to "No Tolls" I just blindly followed it to the toll road. (Having that "Doh!" moment just before I get to the toll booth.)

Anyway I ended up paying a toll every several miles. The booths all had lanes for the "Sun Pass" and a couple..... off to the side.... for cash. ONE of which was for "Change needed".

As I recall, there were about 4 booths along the way and in the end I ended up paying about $20.00, the most expensive (and last) one was about $6.75 (or so).

I was less annoyed by the cost and more annoyed that I had to slow down the rig every time to stop and pay (even if I had the pass, I would have to slow down, just not stop). Although the cost did irk me too.

I would NOT go down the path of having a "Bill Sent". Typically most of the toll booths, if you don't stop and pay, they will take your picture and then send you a FINE which will be much higher then the toll. Even if you stopped and claimed poverty asked for a bill (and if they would do it), I am sure it will also be a higher bill (to cover the cost of labor to generate, mail, and track the bill).

I will say, that from my previous trip in August 2016 (where we ended up coming home on I4 - I95) we hit a LOT of congestion on I4 and this time in December, that Toll road was mostly clear sailing (except the stopping to pay the tolls)

 

[Teamubr]

I'll go up against Ed... NO, just kidding.

The toll roads in FL don't have the drive through-send me a bill later option. I've had that in Colorado when we were racing. Pretty easy, but it took a month to get the bill and I forgot about it by then.

Getting a SunPass (or whatever tag the toll roads coming into WDW use) is pretty easy. You can get a stick on tag and load it with $$ on their website. Not actually stopping and paying is nicer than stopping at a booth.

I didn't look at the rates on the web site, but I know Florida rates are based on axles, so a car and trailer is more than just a car. Last time I did look, I could find the regular passenger car rate, but not the extra axle rate. Also, Illinois now charges extra for "dual wheels". When I was driving up to northern Indiana, I went across I-80 past Chicago. The sign said "4 axles- $4.65". I get to the booth and she says $4.95. I pointed to the sign and she said, "you have dual rear wheels". Wasn't on any sign I could see. Not sure if Florida has gone to that level of detail... yet.

j

 

[Barney Fife]

I think we're just doing I-4 again. We came here on 4 last Saturday and it was gridlocked around noon. But it cleared up just before the WDW exits. Two wrecks seemed to be the cause but all that construction didn't help things. Being Sunday morning, hopefully it will be smooth.

I love the six lanes to Daytona. Last time we were here, it was still four.

Thanks for all the help. Don't want to go home.

 

[PaHunter]

We came over 528 from Titusville to Disney last year, was around 7.50 with Sunpass. That was the truck(dually) and the travel trailer. So it is an alternative, but we came thru during the week and was smooth sailing.

 

[snowmedic]

Sunpass is the way to go, with them changing out the toll booth sections to the overhead readers, you only have to slow from the 65 mph down to the 55mph. No more getting in line and waiting at a booth. And if it adds an extra 15 minutes to the ride, at least it is somewhat of a scenic ride. We like taking the toll road over instead of 4.

 

[FortForever]

Tolls cost me $4.50 .... $3 at one and $1.50 at the other, but I come down 75. Whatever you do, don't skip the toll booths. You will get a bill in the mail, but it will include a big, fat fine.

 

[KristinU]

There's a thread on the Orlando Hotels and Attractions forum about an app called Paytollo, sounds like a decent alternative to buying a Sunpass for those of us who wouldn't be using one that frequently. I think I'm going to give it a shot in April when we are down for Spring vacation and will have a rental car (staying at Bonnet Creek for that one). I don't know how it works for larger vehicles/towing and higher tolls, though.

http://www.disboards.com/threads/pay-tollo-with-rental-car-in-orlando.3563143/

 

[mightyexplorers]

We come in on i75 as well and I can't recall exactly what we pay in tolls but I do know it is less than $10 and not terribly inconvenient, even when we get off into the cash lane I don't think we have ever had to wait behind more than one car.
Our motorhome only has two axles but when we had our travel trailer and 4 axles it wasn't much more and I think still less than $10.

 

[peg110]

Okay... So now I am upset. This thread has made me do some research. According to http://floridasturnpike.com/TollCalcV5/, with 4 axles (2 on the truck, 2 on the trailer) Traveling on 528 from the I-4 interchange to the I-95 Interchange I should have been charged $8.50 (the cash rate). Sadly I didn't get a receipt at each stop, but I can tell you I paid much more than that. The calculator for 8 axles puts the cost closer to $13.75, but I am pretty sure I paid more than that. (closer to $17 or $18). The last toll both charged me almost $5.00 at which point I asked why it was so expensive. (sadly, I don't recall the signs being very descriptive beyond the "Car" rate). She stated to me "That's why the locals take I-4." and she also indicated that this was the "Last" toll booth before I-95.

Why do I feel like I have been taken advantage of?

 

[PaHunter]

Paul,

They saw the PA plates and knew you were from out of state and too young to be a snowbird....there is an unpublished upcharge for that.....

JK, not sure why yours was so much, like i said we paid the 8.50 listed for the 4 axles.

 

[daemom]

I too will not compete with Ed, but what I will add, is that when I left the Fort on December 2, 2016, my GPS (well Google maps on my phone) steered me to the "Toll Road" as I was heading back home to NEPA. Forgetting that I did not set it to "No Tolls" I just blindly followed it to the toll road. (Having that "Doh!" moment just before I get to the toll booth.)

Anyway I ended up paying a toll every several miles. The booths all had lanes for the "Sun Pass" and a couple..... off to the side.... for cash. ONE of which was for "Change needed".

As I recall, there were about 4 booths along the way and in the end I ended up paying about $20.00, the most expensive (and last) one was about $6.75 (or so).

I was less annoyed by the cost and more annoyed that I had to slow down the rig every time to stop and pay (even if I had the pass, I would have to slow down, just not stop). Although the cost did irk me too.

I would NOT go down the path of having a "Bill Sent". Typically most of the toll booths, if you don't stop and pay, they will take your picture and then send you a FINE which will be much higher then the toll. Even if you stopped and claimed poverty asked for a bill (and if they would do it), I am sure it will also be a higher bill (to cover the cost of labor to generate, mail, and track the bill).

I will say, that from my previous trip in August 2016 (where we ended up coming home on I4 - I95) we hit a LOT of congestion on I4 and this time in December, that Toll road was mostly clear sailing (except the stopping to pay the tolls)

We must have traveled the same route because our tolls cost $27 And you're right--it seemed like I'd no more get our toll money put away and then it was time to stop at the next booth a couple of times! LOL! Also agree that the toll road was not heavily traveled so it was a nice drive.

 

[FortForever]

We come in on i75 as well and I can't recall exactly what we pay in tolls but I do know it is less than $10 and not terribly inconvenient, even when we get off into the cash lane I don't think we have ever had to wait behind more than one car.
Our motorhome only has two axles but when we had our travel trailer and 4 axles it wasn't much more and I think still less than $10.

We just went last week, so it was easy to remember. Ask me when I haven't been in six months, and I'll have no clue.

We were staying at POP, not towing. So the $4.50 between i75 and WDW is a two axle price. I never came down 95, even when we lived up north. Too much traffic.

 

[Barney Fife]

We ended up doing I-4 Sunday morning. Amazing how much traffic there was at 9:30am. Guess Orlando has a LOT of church going folks.

But speeds stayed fairly good and of course, once we started getting to the east side of Orlando, no problems at all. 612 miles from the Fort to Garner and it took us 10.5 hours. That included a lunch stop of about 20 minutes and 3 other stops for bathrooms and snacks. Kept the cruise at 72 mph the majority of the time.

 

[bama_ed]

There's a thread on the Orlando Hotels and Attractions forum about an app called Paytollo, sounds like a decent alternative to buying a Sunpass for those of us who wouldn't be using one that frequently. I think I'm going to give it a shot in April when we are down for Spring vacation and will have a rental car (staying at Bonnet Creek for that one). I don't know how it works for larger vehicles/towing and higher tolls, though.

http://www.disboards.com/threads/pay-tollo-with-rental-car-in-orlando.3563143/

Interesting app there, KristinU. Thanks for sharing the idea.

I guess it sorta acts like a "moveable" SunPass. Since the app is on your phone, you can always update the app/phone for whatever vehicle you are in to cover yourself and drive through like a local where ever you are. The low-balance/recharge feature works very much like the SunPass transponder does.

I've had my SunPass for years and it's stuck to the windshield of my Suburban so I'll keep it for a while. But Pay Tollo is a good option if someone is just starting out and considering buying a SunPass to use infrequently.

Bama Ed

 

[KristinU]

Yeah, that's what I was thinking, Ed. As I patiently continue to hold my breath for my EZ-pass to work on the Sunpass system (a day I doubt I'll ever see...but every so many years there are glimmers of integration). I just need to read up on larger vehicles. Since we sometimes fly down and rent a car and sometimes drive down with the camper, something that is not vehicle specific should, in theory, be ideal for us.

 

[KristinU]

So, I downloaded the app and played a little with it, right now it looks like it only accommodates passenger vehicles that you choose from a list of make then model. I used their "contact us" email form to ask about RV's and trucks towing trailers. I'll report back when I get a response!