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Parkway Ahead Of Curve For Tolls

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By KEVIN WIATROWSKI

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 13, 2008

LAND O' LAKES - For drivers on Florida's toll roads, the future will look a lot like the Suncoast Parkway.

The toll road running north across west-central Pasco County was the first in the state to use electronic sensors mounted above and within the road to collect tolls automatically without forcing drivers to slow down.

A similar system tracks cars using the elevated portion of the Selmon Crosstown Expressway between Brandon and Tampa.

Florida's Turnpike Enterprise, the agency that manages the state's network of toll roads, plans to copy the Suncoast model across its entire system, Orlando-based tollway planner Carleen Flynn told Pasco officials last week.

The changes will be gradual and keyed to road-widening projects, Flynn said. It's unclear when the entire system will be automated, Flynn said.

"We're not sure about the date yet," Flynn told the Metropolitan Planning Organization. The organization is made up of the county's five commissioners and the mayors of the county's four cities. It sets transportation policy.
Turnpike officials also are planning to release a new version of the system's transponder, the windshield-mounted device that tracks users on the toll network.

At $4.99, the new transponders will be smaller and less-expensive than the current design. They will be activated when stuck to a car's windshield and will deactivate when removed, Flynn said.

The new transponders will be available this year at Publix.

Reporter Kevin Wiatrowski can be reached at kwiatrowski@tampatrib.com or (813) 948-4201.

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