On Dec. 29 drivers will have to pay to cross the old Highway 520 floating bridge in Seattle, WA. Tolls will vary by time of day among several rates. Tolls are highest for trucks and trailers. A three-axle vehicle with a state toll sticker will pay $5.25 each way during peak times, according to the Seattle Times.
Money is electronically debited from a state account as vehicles pass through at highway speed. There are no toll booths on the bridge. Vehicles without a pre-paid sticker will be billed by mail and charged an extra $1.50, about equal to the extra cost of processing. Drivers also can use a “pay by plate” system, allowing them to sign up online to make a trip using a prepaid account, at the standard rate plus 25 cents.
Truckers can access the state’s toll website at goodtogo.org or by phone at 866-936-8246 to set up an account and order a toll sticker. Drivers prepay into their own state toll account, using a debit or credit card, or they can arrange for an automatic draw from their bank account into the Good to Go account. It will take four or five business days for a sticker to arrive by mail.
To avert the tolls on Highway 520, drivers can divert to Interstate 90, which is not tolled, or go around the north end of Lake Washington on Highway 522.
Tolls are designed to raise money for a new floating bridge, while also reducing traffic at peak times.
