E-ZPass: Your Ticket to a Stress-Free Drive

When most people think of “travel”, they probably picture planes soaring over mountains of clouds, trains speeding through rolling plains, or ships steaming across vast oceans. But what about the car? This humble little vehicle may not seem as romantic or grand, but still faithfully transports us where we need to go, tirelessly motoring along the open road. A car means freedom and flexibility. And there is something to be said for the sense of adventure that comes with navigating across the country with the wheel in your hands and your friends by your side.

A month ago, I finally bought my own car (yay!). I had been borrowing my dad’s car for years, taking it on long weekends to Washington DC. Naturally you can imagine how this situation was not ideal for my father, who is quite thrilled to have his car back for his own use. New car (which is going to be named, but I have been struggling to find the right name) has already escorted me on a voyage to Beantown.

Why is Boston called "Beantown"?
I looked this up and discovered some rather interesting information about Boston’s history. It is called Beantown because beans baked in molasses was a Boston favorite back in colonial times. And the interesting tidbit discovered when looking this information up – apparently there was a killer flood of molasses. Yes, you read that right, molasses. The Great Molasses Flood of 1919 killed 21 people when a tankard of molasses exploded. Source

On said voyage to Beantown – and that’s a nickname for Boston, btw – I finally noticed the absence of E-ZPass. My dad has it on his car, but surprisingly enough, cars don’t automatically come with E-ZPass and I was once again relegated to having to wait in the endless toll booth lines.

I am someone who greatly values her time, so E-ZPass is a thing of wonder to me. Speeding past the suckers waiting in line provides endless enjoyment. (Seriously, my boyfriend always comments on how gleeful I look when driving through the E-ZPass lane. E-ZPass makes me happy).

If you are in the northeast area, I would highly recommend getting an E-ZPass tag for your car. Unfortunately it does not cover the whole nation, but it will work in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and New England as well as other states. I do happen to take long car trips across Pennsylvania, as I have relatives in Harrisburg and in Ohio. (The Pennsylvania Turnpike is horrifyingly endless, although quite scenic. I like the windmills near the Somerset rest area).

What is E-ZPass?

E-ZPass is an electronic toll collection system that allows drivers to pay a toll without having to stop at a booth.  Special sensors use the E-ZPass tag to connect with a prepaid E-ZPass account and withdrawal the necessary funds.

What states does it cover?

The program covers 14 states overseen by the E-ZPass Interagency Group (IAG), which is comprised of 25 different agencies. Basically it can be used in the northeastern part of the United States, going as far west as Illinois and as far south as Virginia, all the way north up to Maine. Check out this map of of the 14 states in the IAG for more details. (Note: it is a PDF file). Not in the northeast? Check out a list different electronic toll collection systems.

How to Get Your E-ZPass

Go to the website for your agency and look over the different plans that they offer for your state. (I admit I was a little overwhelmed by the variety of options they provided and just chose the standard plan). The cost varies for different states and different agencies. Once you’re signed up, they’ll send you a tag in the mail. Follow their instructions for how to put it in your car (you have to put it in a specific spot). Then, when you are driving on a toll road, you stay in the EZPass lanes and cruise by while non-E-ZPass users get stuck in long lines as they frantically dig for loose change.

E-ZPass Agencies

The IAG is comprised of twenty-five different agencies in fourteen different states. You can purchase your E-ZPass from any of the agencies, and they all have their own website, so do your research, as the different agencies do have different costs associated with them.

E-ZPass for Out of Area Visitors

For the out of stater travelling through the northeast, and does not want to deal with long toll lines, they do have an option called E-ZPass On-The-Go. You can purchase an E-ZPass at a participating retailer and activate it via the phone, through the internet or in person. You can use their website to search for nearby locations (the best thing to do is to look this up ahead of time).

So what are you waiting for? Seriously - get an E-ZPass. It is your ticket to a stress-free drive. And if anything, it means you can leave ten minutes later without having to worry about those darn toll lanes.