Traveling into Pennsylvania across the new Scudder Falls Bridge could cost commuters anywhere from 75 cents to $2.60 under newly proposed tolls.
The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission unveiled their proposed Scudder Falls Replacement Bridge toll schedule on Monday. The new tolls are projected to take effect in 2019, when the first section of the new bridge is expected to open.
If approved in late September by the commission’s board of directors, tolls would be:
$1.25 for passenger vehicles with E-ZPass$2.60 for toll-by-plate passenger vehicles without E-ZPass75 cents for commuters who make at least 16 tolled trips per month using a commission-affiliated E-ZPass tag.
Tolls will be charged in the southbound direction through an all-electronic toll collection system, which aims to eliminate tollbooth congestion.
It will be business as usual for drivers with an EZ-Pass. Drivers without an EZ-Pass will go through a toll-by-plate system where their licenses plates are photographed as they drive through the tolling plaza. A bill will then be sent to the home of the vehicle’s registered owner.
Joseph J. Resta, the commission’s executive director, said their goal was to keep the toll rates as low as possible.
“The $1.25 base E-ZPass toll and 75-cent E-ZPass commuter-discount toll are in keeping with this goal, especially given the scope and complexity of the upcoming bridge replacement project,” Resta said.
While commuters can travel across the current bridge for free, tolls are being added to help cover the project’s estimated $328 million cost. The new bridge will have three through-traffic lanes in each direction, two northbound and one southbound auxiliary lanes, widened shoulders, and a bike path. Construction is slated to begin in 2017.
The commission will hold six public hearings in New Jersey and Pennsylvania before they vote on the toll pricing, two of which will be held in the Mercer County area. The first will be held July 19 at the West Trenton Volunteer Fire House, 40 Upper Ferry Road, West Trenton. An informational project open house will begin at 4:30 p.m. and the toll hearing will begin at 6 p.m.
The second meeting will be held on July 21 at William Penn Middle School, 1524 Derbyshire Road, Yardley, Pennsylvania. The informational project open house will begin at 4:30 p.m. and the toll hearing will begin at 6 p.m.
The commission also announced they are accepting public comments through Aug. 29. Comments can be submitted through the commission’s website, by emailing communityaffairs@drjtbc.org, or by mailing letters to: Director of Community Affairs Jodee Inscho, DRJTBC Executive Offices, 2492 River Road, New Hope, PA. 18938.
Construction on a new Scudder Falls Bridge is set to begin in 2017. The project will take at least four years to complete and will be funded by electronic tolls to the southbound lanes.,
