Toll Violators Can Now have Registration Suspended

PRESS RELEASE FROM GOVERNOR’S OFFICE

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo last week announced the adoption of a regulation to take action against motorists who persistently evade paying tolls and fees on New York’s roadways. The regulation allows the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles to suspend the registration of motorists who fail to pay five tolls, fees, and other charges resulting from violations on different days, within a period of 18 months, and ignore toll authorities’ repeated notices. The regulation takes effect immediately and was first proposed by the Department of Motor Vehicles in November.

“We are sending a clear message that New York State will not tolerate toll violators,” Governor Cuomo said. “For far too long, these scofflaws have skirted their responsibility of helping maintain the state’s transportation network and placed the burden on the backs of law-abiding motorists. With this regulation adopted, we can now ensure that those who travel in New York State pay their fair share.”

New York’s tolling authorities — including the New York State Thruway Authority, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the New York State Bridge Authority, and Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Bridges and Tunnels — report that non-payment of tolls, even with violation notices being sent, is a persistent challenge. Within an 18-month period, these authorities found nearly 35,000 cases where violators accrued five or more unpaid toll violations, resulting in about $16.5 million in lost revenue annually.

With the adoption of this regulation, violators will be required to pay the tolls and fees, or to have the charges dismissed, in order to prevent the suspension of their registrations or for their registrations to be reinstated.