An article was recently written in the Portsmouth Herald on March 21st, 2017, about the Spaulding Turnpike looking into automated tolls to reduce the traffic and corruption in the area.

There has been major traffic in the Rochester and Dover Area, along with some roads into Hooksett, New Hampshire. The traffic has became a very dramatic safety issue, and the New Hampshire Senate is trying to make a change for the community.

The bill that the Senate is trying to pass includes making electric, automatic tolls that don’t require any stopping. Similar to the E-ZPass, drivers will drive straight through the toll, and the system will record their license plate number and track it back to the linked address. The system will then send a bill in the future to the driver, charging them for passing through the tolls.

Pros:

These automated tolls will most definitely decrease the amount of traffic on these busy roads during the day. Drivers will not have to worry about traffic, and getting to where they need to go on time, due to the fast running tolls that will not cause delays.

Drivers will no longer have to fish for change in their car if they come across these tolls and forget to gather the few cents for the tolls. This will increase the speed of the drivers going through, not having to stop and dig for change– and also be less stressful for the drivers themselves.

Drivers will not have to worry about instantly giving up the toll fees, they can wait until they are billed and the bill is sent to their home to pay.

Drivers will be able to change around their schedules, leave at a later or earlier time, and not having to worry about traffic getting to other places.

The faster tolls in this area will show those drivers who don’t use E-ZPass what it is like, which will increase more drivers to use the E-ZPass system and increase their business. According to the Portsmouth Herald, about 75 percent of drivers are already using an E-ZPass, so the other 25 percent would be under a great deal of influence.

Cons:

Young drivers who have new licenses may not be driving a car that is under their name. Any toll fees will be sent to the owner of the car, and the owner will have to pay the bills.

Drivers could also get annoyed with the small bills they have to get in the mail. The amount will depend on how much drivers are using the tolls, but it may be a hassle to try and pay small amounts.

Drivers will be less influenced to buy an E-ZPass when the newer tolls are similar to what E-ZPass users are doing. Drivers may feel there is no need for an E-ZPass, which will decrease their business.