New all-electronic tolling system goes live on Richmond routes this weekend

A new, cash-free toll system will start up this weekend on the Powhite Parkway, the Downtown Expressway and the Boulevard Bridge, according to the Richmond Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

The authority had already announced it would transition to all-electronic tolling, and that system is now ready to go live.

Starting Saturday, motorists will no longer be able to pay tolls with cash and coins in most circumstances. Drivers with an E-Z pass will be largely unaffected. Anyone without an E-Z-Pass will have bills mailed to them via a newly installed camera system that captures license plates.

Cash will still be accepted on the Downtown Expressway, but only between 6:30 a.m. and 9 p.m.

The RMTA is encouraging drivers to get an E-ZPass for maximum convenience and cost-efficiency. On the Powhite Parkway and Downtown Expressway, drivers without an E-ZPass will pay substantially more, being charged a $2 rate versus a 90-cent rate for the E-Z Pass.

With drivers no longer having to stop at tollbooths, the transition should increase traffic flow and improve safety by reducing the possibility of accidents at toll chokepoints.

Contact Reporter Graham Moomaw at gmoomaw@richmonder.org