Tolls End on Georgia Highway 400

When the tolls began in 1993, they were scheduled to last only 20 years, but the bonds stretched out to 2017; Deal made it a priority to get them paid off just a few months after the 20th anniversary.

Gov. Deal said the pay-off saves the state $1.3 million in interest, and he estimated that commuters will save around $70 million in money they would have dropped in the toll baskets between now and 2017.

A couple from Sandy Springs, Linda and Michael Weinroth, paid the first 50 cents, in August 1993, and Friday, they paid the last 50 cents. Linda Weinroth told reporters she actually has mixed feelings about the toll booths coming down. “It’s our claim to fame: what can I say? Um, I don’t know. I’m going to have to let you know after I drive on it a few times without paying the toll,” said Weinroth. “And I might say it’s better than I ever thought it would be.”

Transportation officials estimate the traffic on GA-400 will increase between 10 and 18 percent now that it is a toll-free road. Those new drivers and longtime commuters can expect delays for the next few months while crews work to dismantle the toll plaza. Meanwhile, plans are underway to put up new tolls on Interstate 75 south of Atlanta.

If you have a Peach Pass, you’ll be able to use it for those new tolls, or for the variable HOT toll lanes currently on I-85 or you can close out your account and get your money back.

The tolls on Georgia Highway 400 are no more.

Toll booth collectors stopped taking money around 11:30 a.m. Friday, a few hours earlier than scheduled, after Gov. Nathan Deal marked the occasion with a ceremony at the toll plaza.

Gov. Deal was clearly delighted by the chance to mark the official end of the tolls on GA-400, a campaign promise he made back in 2010, telling the crowd you could say the public had put in its two cents worth. “Today we’re gonna let them keep their 50 cents from this point forward,” said Deal.

When the tolls began in 1993, they were scheduled to last only 20 years, but the bonds stretched out to 2017; Deal made it a priority to get them paid off just a few months after the 20th anniversary.

Gov. Deal said the pay-off saves the state $1.3 million in interest, and he estimated that commuters will save around $70 million in money they would have dropped in the toll baskets between now and 2017.

A couple from Sandy Springs, Linda and Michael Weinroth, paid the first 50 cents, in August 1993, and Friday, they paid the last 50 cents. Linda Weinroth told reporters she actually has mixed feelings about the toll booths coming down. “It’s our claim to fame: what can I say? Um, I don’t know. I’m going to have to let you know after I drive on it a few times without paying the toll,” said Weinroth. “And I might say it’s better than I ever thought it would be.”

Transportation officials estimate the traffic on GA-400 will increase between 10 and 18 percent now that it is a toll-free road. Those new drivers and longtime commuters can expect delays for the next few months while crews work to dismantle the toll plaza. Meanwhile, plans are underway to put up new tolls on Interstate 75 south of Atlanta.

If you have a Peach Pass, you’ll be able to use it for those new tolls, or for the variable HOT toll lanes currently on I-85 or you can close out your account and get your money back.

The tolls on Georgia Highway 400 are no more.

Toll booth collectors stopped taking money around 11:30 a.m. Friday, a few hours earlier than scheduled, after Gov. Nathan Deal marked the occasion with a ceremony at the toll plaza.

Gov. Deal was clearly delighted by the chance to mark the official end of the tolls on GA-400, a campaign promise he made back in 2010, telling the crowd you could say the public had put in its two cents worth. “Today we’re gonna let them keep their 50 cents from this point forward,” said Deal.

When the tolls began in 1993, they were scheduled to last only 20 years, but the bonds stretched out to 2017; Deal made it a priority to get them paid off just a few months after the 20th anniversary.

Gov. Deal said the pay-off saves the state $1.3 million in interest, and he estimated that commuters will save around $70 million in money they would have dropped in the toll baskets between now and 2017.

A couple from Sandy Springs, Linda and Michael Weinroth, paid the first 50 cents, in August 1993, and Friday, they paid the last 50 cents. Linda Weinroth told reporters she actually has mixed feelings about the toll booths coming down. “It’s our claim to fame: what can I say? Um, I don’t know. I’m going to have to let you know after I drive on it a few times without paying the toll,” said Weinroth. “And I might say it’s better than I ever thought it would be.”

Transportation officials estimate the traffic on GA-400 will increase between 10 and 18 percent now that it is a toll-free road. Those new drivers and longtime commuters can expect delays for the next few months while crews work to dismantle the toll plaza. Meanwhile, plans are underway to put up new tolls on Interstate 75 south of Atlanta.

If you have a Peach Pass, you’ll be able to use it for those new tolls, or for the variable HOT toll lanes currently on I-85 or you can close out your account and get your money back.