Study: Houston GDP Would Jump 3% If Toll Booths Removed

[H-Town Man]

I actually just made this statistic up, but I imagine it could very well be true.

 

Could somebody please tell me why Houston still has coin-operated and cash full-service toll booths when the rest of the state has entered the 21st century with tolltag-only toll plazas? I believe Dallas made the conversion about 5 or 6 years ago and has never looked back.

 

It took me 50 minutes this morning to drive from 249 to the Westpark Tollway on Beltway 8. This might be acceptable if I had driven clockwise around the city, but I actually drove counter-clockwise. The two major areas of heavy traffic were - you guessed it - the two areas leading up to the two antiquated toll plazas, as everybody shuffled back and forth to get to the lanes they needed.

 

What makes it even more ridiculous is that the EZ-Tag lanes were ACTUALLY SLOWER than the toll booth lanes. This is because there are so many cars using EZ-Tag, and so many more lanes provided for the Luddites who want to pay with cash, that the Luddites could actually get through more quickly than the advanced forward-thinking people.

 

You can actually visit a spot on Dallas' North Tollway where the toll plaza used to be, near Keller Springs Road, and witness the marvel of traffic whizzing along without any slowdown, with only some divots in the pavement to remind one of the bygone feudal days when cars waited in line to throw money in a bucket. Also, when you enter the tollway, where there used to be a booth there is now a little yellow sign that says "Keep Moving - We'll Bill You." So pithy and effective.

 

Sometimes I drive to Houston with my wife (who is from Dallas) and when she sees our antebellum (Iraq War) toll plazas her jaw drops open, the way Northern journalists used to react when travelling through the South and seeing unpainted shacks and tenant farmers whose backs were disfigured by scoliosis. At which point my face usually turns bright red as I attempt to mumble some invented explanation about how Houston has had toll roads longer, so the toll booth workers' unions are more powerful, etc.

 

Fix it, HCTRA. Speed up the roads and stop embarrassing everyone.

 

[BigFootsSocks]

That last paragraph

I mean, how much money do they make off of cash customers vs. toll tags? I assume it's significantly higher, but enough to warrant those cash lanes, although they are studying why those customers refuse to get a tag. So I assume the cash tolls have a short life span.

[IronTiger]

I actually just made this statistic up, but I imagine it could very well be true.

 

Could somebody please tell me why Houston still has coin-operated and cash full-service toll booths when the rest of the state has entered the 21st century with tolltag-only toll plazas? I believe Dallas made the conversion about 5 or 6 years ago and has never looked back.

 

It took me 50 minutes this morning to drive from 249 to the Westpark Tollway on Beltway 8. This might be acceptable if I had driven clockwise around the city, but I actually drove counter-clockwise. The two major areas of heavy traffic were - you guessed it - the two areas leading up to the two antiquated toll plazas, as everybody shuffled back and forth to get to the lanes they needed.

 

What makes it even more ridiculous is that the EZ-Tag lanes were ACTUALLY SLOWER than the toll booth lanes. This is because there are so many cars using EZ-Tag, and so many more lanes provided for the Luddites who want to pay with cash, that the Luddites could actually get through more quickly than the advanced forward-thinking people.

 

You can actually visit a spot on Dallas' North Tollway where the toll plaza used to be, near Keller Springs Road, and witness the marvel of traffic whizzing along without any slowdown, with only some divots in the pavement to remind one of the bygone feudal days when cars waited in line to throw money in a bucket. Also, when you enter the tollway, where there used to be a booth there is now a little yellow sign that says "Keep Moving - We'll Bill You." So pithy and effective.

 

Sometimes I drive to Houston with my wife (who is from Dallas) and when she sees our antebellum (Iraq War) toll plazas her jaw drops open, the way Northern journalists used to react when travelling through the South and seeing unpainted shacks and tenant farmers whose backs were disfigured by scoliosis. At which point my face usually turns bright red as I attempt to mumble some invented explanation about how Houston has had toll roads longer, so the toll booth workers' unions are more powerful, etc.

 

Fix it, HCTRA. Speed up the roads and stop embarrassing everyone.

If what Dallas Freeways says is true, I believe that Dallas was one of the first places to even do electronic tolling, so there's that.

Speaking as someone who spent $14 today in tolls in small bills and quarters (US-290 to I-45, roundtrip, counterclockwise), what I observed was that the EZ Tag lanes slowed down a bit approaching the booth, but approaching the toll booths had the EZ Tag lanes going through smoothly at full speed, with the full coin/change made booths slow down to a dead stop.

[Montrose1100]

The cash/coin laying toll plazas are the main cause of delay during rush hour.

There is some network science going on our freeways anyways, if one of the right or left lanes slows, it causes a domino effect for all the lanes to slow even though they may not be directly affected.

It's different if there's an accident, because all lanes slow on both sides.

This slowing down occurs at toll plazas (every single one except the ez-tag only ones), when an extremely slow 18 wheeler enters the freeway, freeway interchanges, high volume of traffic entering/exiting the freeway.

The northeast section of the beltway is ez-tag only, and although there's never any traffic, it's nice and modern. Will fill up eventually I'm sure. Enjoy the 100mph section while you can .

[IronTiger]

One of the things I did notice is that when they have signs that say "Cash Lanes Right, EZ Tag Left" people try to swerve around (well, figuratively...most of the time) and change lanes, and all that does cause slowdown. Another anoying tendency I've found for the cash lanes is that almost instantly you'll be in a exit only lane, which again causes weaving.

But really, not having tolltags means that you're either forced off the frontage lanes or get mailed a ticket with a relatively obscene "processing fee". (I'm not sure if this is actually the case for the Houston ones, but I guess this is to cover for all those toll-booth people who would be out of a job.) Still, though, I think the manned/coin tollbooths are fading out in Houston, as I noticed a few exits where it was a dual EZ-Tag/change made lane, and the change made lane was closed, even during a weekday.

I suppose it's just natural that they fade out as technology changes, but complaining about the presence of tollbooths while still zipping through a EZ-Tag lane just seems rather petty.

[H-Town Man]

I suppose it's just natural that they fade out as technology changes, but complaining about the presence of tollbooths while still zipping through a EZ-Tag lane just seems rather petty.

 

Except that I wasn't zipping through it, as you would know if you had read my post. Nobody was. There was a massive slowdown across all lanes that suddenly, magically let up once the toll plaza was past.

 

If you lived in Dallas or Austin for awhile and got used to no toll plaza slowdowns, and then came back to Houston, you would understand the depth of the problem.

[H-Town Man]

Also, if the full conversion was made, there is no need to have a ticket or obscene processing fee. People without the device could just get mailed bills for what they owe, with maybe a very light fee to cover processing. This is how it works in Dallas. No barbaric punishments, faster roads.

 

[august948]

Also, if the full conversion was made, there is no need to have a ticket or obscene processing fee. People without the device could just get mailed bills for what they owe, with maybe a very light fee to cover processing. This is how it works in Dallas. No barbaric punishments, faster roads.

 

I've used the pay by mail option in Austin a few times and each time the bill I end up paying is about 3 times the actual toll amount.  It takes them around 2 months to get the bill to me and it always has a past-due fee already attached.  It's a good concept, but I get the feeling they're deliberately soaking the me each time I use it.

 

[samagon]

The tollway and Hardy toll road, specifically the toll plaza on Hardy toll road, offers a constant reminder that "The Chase" was filmed on location in Houston. This toll plaza was dolled up to look like the border with Mexico. All of the toll plazas provide a brief memory of this icon. I don't think we can afford to lose this memory of the cultural impact our city has had on the world. To do so would be akin to NYC ripping out the Statue of Liberty.

[IronTiger]

Except that I wasn't zipping through it, as you would know if you had read my post. Nobody was. There was a massive slowdown across all lanes that suddenly, magically let up once the toll plaza was past.

 

If you lived in Dallas or Austin for awhile and got used to no toll plaza slowdowns, and then came back to Houston, you would understand the depth of the problem.

I did read your post, and I disagree with it. In this very rare circumstance, I was on the Beltway roughly the exact time and place as you (I went from 290 to I-45 in the same direction). Heck, you even might have seen my car en route. What I observed was that although the EZ Tag lanes slowed down, they still came out ahead, because if you were in the coin lane like me, you had to slow down from 65+ mph to a full stop (whereas the tolltag at least kept moving), then usually had to be behind at least one other person, take a second to dig out those quarters, and then accelerate back up to the speed I was going before. By the time I got out of the toll booth, the cars that were near me initially as we approached it were long gone.

[Nate99]

The Westpark tollway is electronic only and it was gridlocked from end to end the day they opened it.

 

I have faith that they can and will screw up anything related to addressing traffic congestion.

 

That's not exactly it, but it feels that way.  Traffic congestion seems to be an unstoppable force of nature. You could put in Tokyo scale heavy rail from every suburb with London/New York scale subways in town and the Gulf Freeway would still back up around the loop and the 59/288 interchange.

[H-Town Man]

But Beltway 8, again today, moves faster where there is no toll plaza and slows down when nearing a toll plaza. A peculiar coincidence.

I happen to be looking at Westpark tollway at this very moment and there is zero gridlock.

Iron, I agree that if overall traffic volume is low, the EZ tag lanes move faster because they don't have to stop. But at high volume, I am seeing the cars that go to the (virtually empty) coin lanes actually get ahead of the EZ tag cars.

[Nate99]

I happen to be looking at Westpark tollway at this very moment and there is zero gridlock.

 

 

I had a couple of bad experiences on it and have assumed the worst accordingly.  I don't really care to change my mind, thanks.

 

EDIT:

 

Just did a screen grab. I exaggerated, of course, but it doesn't look good.

 

 

Google says it is crap from 1464 all the way to 610. That's what I remember.

 

Outbound looks peachy though.

[H-Town Man]

I had a couple of bad experiences on it and have assumed the worst accordingly. I don't really care to change my mind, thanks.

EDIT:

Just did a screen grab. I exaggerated, of course, but it doesn't look good.

Google says it is crap from 1464 all the way to 610. That's what I remember.

Outbound looks peachy though.

Well I would expect some congestion around 59 and 610, especially with an accident there too.

[IronTiger]

But Beltway 8, again today, moves faster where there is no toll plaza and slows down when nearing a toll plaza. A peculiar coincidence.

I happen to be looking at Westpark tollway at this very moment and there is zero gridlock.

Iron, I agree that if overall traffic volume is low, the EZ tag lanes move faster because they don't have to stop. But at high volume, I am seeing the cars that go to the (virtually empty) coin lanes actually get ahead of the EZ tag cars.

Yesterday I drove from College Station, TX (my home) to Texas City, TX (at a location within a stone's throw of the defunct Mall of the Mainland). I took off at 6:30 am and arrived at about 9:50. I don't know the exact times of where I was in that, but I do know I was in Navasota at 7 am (when my alarm went off, had to make an exit to stop it), and pushed it at an average of 70 mph into Houston (wavering between 65 and 75), when I encountered a jam at FM 1960 (as there usually is), and encountered heavy traffic in the Beltway, most notably near Interstate 10 and Beltway 8, and of course, the tollbooths.

Interestingly, I was thinking at the time "Man, those guys in the EZ Tag lane are actually bunching up while I go straight to the tollbooth" but again, when I actually slow down to a full stop and pause for a few seconds, the EZ Tag people go right through. Next time I go on the Beltway, which will probably be soon given I'm planning to move by the end of the month, I'll actually do some unscientific research by focusing in on a car that's next to me and if it moves faster through EZ Tag during peak hours, which it probably still will do, and if my own tolltag comes in, then I'll do the reverse.

Or try it for yourself.

P.S.: To be fair and accurate in the times I took, I made two stops: Jack in the Box in Waller for breakfast and using the restroom, and Buc-ee's in Texas City for restroom use only.

[Nate99]

Well I would expect some congestion around 59 and 610, especially with an accident there too.

 

The congestion extended all the way back to Clodine.  I wouldn't expect that except on a route that isn't woefully undersized for the people trying to use it, which was my earlier point.  The electronic readers may actually help, hurt or be neutral on Westpark depending on a billion other factors with varying degrees of nonsense that had to be worked in to that particular design. 

 

From a 2012 article:

 

 

Meyers said when the tollway opened in 2004, it was designed to take pressure off of I-10. It did, and it was over-capacity from the time it opened.

 

This jives with my observation.

 

I'm more just an overall traffic pessimist. If you relieve congestion in a region with growth, you just get more density or sprawl to bring back the pain. It is a limiting factor to development such that if relieve it, you've incentivized its return.

 

Without the swerving to pick a lane, highly variable compliance with suggested speeds, and folks slowing to and accelerating from a stop at varying rates, losing the toll booths would have to help, but I'm sure there is a dumb reason why they won't get rid of them. It seems to me that at the toll plazas, there are enough additional lanes that the backup from the coin/manned lanes doesn't ever impact the EZ-tag lanes directly, it's more compounding inefficient reactions to a change in what drivers have to do to get in to whatever particular lane they are going to use. It's like an artificial interchange; at or near peak capacity, it's going to get slow. 

[Sparrow]

HTown, read the thread "Hardy Toll Road Widening"--the HTR for one will indeed be tag only by next summer. Hooray!

 

Not sure when this will happen for the Sam, but surely it can't be too far behind.

 

[IronTiger]

The congestion extended all the way back to Clodine.  I wouldn't expect that except on a route that isn't woefully undersized for the people trying to use it, which was my earlier point.  The electronic readers may help, hurt or be neutral on Westpark depending on a billion other factors with varying degrees of nonsense that had to be worked in to that particular design.

The reason Westpark Tollway is as narrow as it is was because (if I have all my facts straight, I don't want to spread misinformation) that although originally the railroad right of way was wider, it was METRO that bought it originally and worked out a deal with HCTRA to take the top half of the ROW with METRO taking the bottom half (some maps detailing distant future Light Rail plans do have a "Westpark line").

As for traffic pessimism, the West Belt was "tollway-ized" after West Belt Road had been already largely been built up, while the northeast section of the Beltway was brand new.

[Nate99]

The reason Westpark Tollway is as narrow as it is was because (if I have all my facts straight, I don't want to spread misinformation) that although originally the railroad right of way was wider, it was METRO that bought it originally and worked out a deal with HCTRA to take the top half of the ROW with METRO taking the bottom half (some maps detailing distant future Light Rail plans do have a "Westpark line").

As for traffic pessimism, the West Belt was "tollway-ized" after West Belt Road had been already largely been built up, while the northeast section of the Beltway was brand new.

 

Sounds about right. I think they planned decently for 20 years of growth 40 years ago an then the west side of town just shot up way quicker than anyone had the wherewithal to deal with. I'm Northeast now, and they're coming.

 

Planning for growth, especially through the political process, is going to come up with quite a lot of lost value along the way.

[ADCS]

I'm all on board as long as they have a toll-by-plate option, which HCTRA facilities do not.

 

It's absurd and unbelievably unwelcoming that half the Houston freeway network is unavailable to those who don't have an EZ Tag/TollTag/TXTag.

[IronTiger]

I'm all on board as long as they have a toll-by-plate option, which HCTRA facilities do not.

 

It's absurd and unbelievably unwelcoming that half the Houston freeway network is unavailable to those who don't have an EZ Tag/TollTag/TXTag.

The Austin facilities I believe do have the "toll by plate" option, which results in the nonsense "processing fees", and because they waited decades to really start building an adequate freeway system, they're all tolls, and they're all electronic-only. Having forced to take frontage roads my last trip to Austin coming west in from 290 seemed almost demeaning.

The solution is to have toll by plate but without any additional fees and fines beyond the quarter or so tollbooths get more of. Would be nice to have pre-paid postage, too.

[H-Town Man]

The congestion extended all the way back to Clodine.

I have personally observed it whizzing along all day since before 9 at Beltway 8.

[H-Town Man]

The Austin facilities I believe do have the "toll by plate" option, which results in the nonsense "processing fees", and because they waited decades to really start building an adequate freeway system, they're all tolls, and they're all electronic-only. Having forced to take frontage roads my last trip to Austin coming west in from 290 seemed almost demeaning.

The solution is to have toll by plate but without any additional fees and fines beyond the quarter or so tollbooths get more of. Would be nice to have pre-paid postage, too.

I agree on the solution. But, Austin freeways are all tolls? Did I read that correctly?

[samagon]

serious answer time, increasing the flow through the toll plazas will just open that bottleneck and other bottlenecks will be revealed. maybe it will help? sure.

 

and westpark tollroad is a traffic mess even without a toll plaza. in the afternoons you'll crawl from Fondren to well past the Kirkwood exit (I have no idea how far cause when I take it in the afternoons I exit Kirkwood). That is just because it was overcapacity on the day it was opened though. At first it was stated that the cause of the congestion was the i10 rebuild, then after i10 reopened it stayed packed, and is still.

[Subdude]

That last paragraph

I mean, how much money do they make off of cash customers vs. toll tags? I assume it's significantly higher, but enough to warrant those cash lanes, although they are studying why those customers refuse to get a tag. So I assume the cash tolls have a short life span.

 

I always assumed they made more money off of the toll tags than cash customers.  That is because they keep the Texas tag accounts topped up in $20 increments, so they must always have a large balance sitting around on which the state, not the driver is earning interest.

[IronTiger]

I agree on the solution. But, Austin freeways are all tolls? Did I read that correctly?

Not ALL Austin freeways, no. Interstate 35 is free, and so is most of Highway 1 as well as 183 west of I-35. But Texas 45, their only "beltway" road isn't, as is 183A, 130, and 290 heading east out of town isn't. Beyond those are just four lane surface highways that get regularly congested in the morning (that make Houston's look like a few stoplights in comparison), and the whole system just feels underdeveloped and overtolled.

I've never been on Westpark, but I felt that the Dallas North Tollway (south of 635 at least) when I went on it with a group last fall wasn't even to freeway standards, much less tollway systems. It felt like it was a pre-1960s parkway.

But what I think about Dallas or Austin tollways is irrelevant, and let's focus on the issues on hand...the tollbooths in Houston, and I still hold by my observation that despite the seeming slowdown approaching the tollbooths, that EZTag users still get by much faster than coins or change made booths.

[HoustonMidtown]

I drive the Hardy Toll road north and south and North BW8 east and west daily - unless there is a wreck, I rarely slow down going through he EZPass lanes - the pay lanes are always slower

[H-Town Man]

Not ALL Austin freeways, no. Interstate 35 is free, and so is most of Highway 1 as well as 183 west of I-35. But Texas 45, their only "beltway" road isn't, as is 183A, 130, and 290 heading east out of town isn't. Beyond those are just four lane surface highways that get regularly congested in the morning (that make Houston's look like a few stoplights in comparison), and the whole system just feels underdeveloped and overtolled.

I've never been on Westpark, but I felt that the Dallas North Tollway (south of 635 at least) when I went on it with a group last fall wasn't even to freeway standards, much less tollway systems. It felt like it was a pre-1960s parkway.

But what I think about Dallas or Austin tollways is irrelevant, and let's focus on the issues on hand...the tollbooths in Houston, and I still hold by my observation that despite the seeming slowdown approaching the tollbooths, that EZTag users still get by much faster than coins or change made booths.

I'm not arguing my observation vs your observation as nauseam. I witnessed cars getting through faster in the coin lanes; I'm sure you have witnessed the opposite, since both are known to happen.

The main point is that traffic slows down due to our outdated toll plazas, and if we went to a pure electronic system with a reasonable bill-by-mail, we'd all be much better off.

[H-Town Man]

Not ALL Austin freeways, no. Interstate 35 is free, and so is most of Highway 1 as well as 183 west of I-35. But Texas 45, their only "beltway" road isn't, as is 183A, 130, and 290 heading east out of town isn't. Beyond those are just four lane surface highways that get regularly congested in the morning (that make Houston's look like a few stoplights in comparison), and the whole system just feels underdeveloped and overtolled.

I've never been on Westpark, but I felt that the Dallas North Tollway (south of 635 at least) when I went on it with a group last fall wasn't even to freeway standards, much less tollway systems. It felt like it was a pre-1960s parkway.

Basically the entire core of the Austin metro area has free freeways except a short stretch of 290. "they're all tolls"....

The Dallas North Tollway a pre-1960s parkway? Not even to freeway standards? You should visit these places more than once.

[mkultra25]

It's been several years since I was last on any Austin-area toll roads, but at the time I didn't think the bill-by-plate fee was all that onerous. I didn't have a TXTag and was happy to pay the extra 50 cents or whatever it was, given how infrequently I was traveling to Austin on business. 

 

I definitely agree that Harris County needs to get with the program and implement a similar bill-by-plate system. I'd also like to see tags that attach to the license plate. I really dislike having yet another large, unsightly tag permanently affixed to my windshield.