Virginia Beach, Va. (WTKR) - The new year will bring a new toll structure and a new way of handling toll discounts at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel.
Starting January 1, 2014, all toll discounts at the 17-mile span that connects Virginia Beach to the Eastern Shore will only apply to those who use E-ZPass.
"That means that people want to avail themselves of the 24-hour round-trip discount that we’ve had over the last several years will have to convert to the E-ZPass system in order to continue to get that discount," explained Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel Deputy Director Tom Anderson.
The toll rate is also changing come January 1st. A toll increase of 10% or $1 for passenger vehicles making a round-trip was approved in August to help pay for the Thimble Shoal Parallel Tunnel Project.
Toll rate increase approved for Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel will also start offering a new commuter discount in the new year.
"A $5 each-way toll rate for people that make 30 trips in 30 days. The first thing that people need to understand is that it’s not related to a calendar month but a 30 day period," Anderson stated.
He continued "The computer system will have a rolling history of transactions in a database for the last 30 days and each time a commuter goes across they’ll look back at that database of transactions and if they’ve been across 30 times in that 30 day period."
Anderson says roughly 50% of CBBT users already have E-ZPass, a number he expects to increase.
"That number is going to increase because of people wanting to take advantage of the discounts," Anderson said.
To find out more about the changes to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel and how to get an E-ZPass, click here.
