Dr. Zatzman Review ++Wonderful review of the 407etr

[VeeNDee 44]

o.O We weren't breaking the law. Out of country license plates are legally exempt.

[The Mean Lady 604]

o.O We weren't breaking the law. Out of country license plates are legally exempt.

WHAT?!

You weren't in Chicago, were you?

[VeeNDee 44]

WHAT?!

You weren't in Chicago, were you?

Nope, Washington State

[The Mean Lady 604]

This was my conversation to my husband:

"How they gonna bill me?! I'm from the US! They're gonna call up the US and be like 'yo gimme this person's address!' I didn't approve them to give my address out."

"I don't know how it works"

"Should be sort of an American perk to driving in Canada.... no wait that makes me sound so pompous that's not what I meant I mean it could work for Mexico too if you wanted to drive up here with Mexican plates... but that's kind of a long drive"

Regardless, the website said US plates count.

Bastards. BASTARDS!

At least in the US tolls, they post a price.

And in the Turnpikes, you can see the rates on the little ticket machines (unless those have changed over the years)

I just feel like I was TOTALLY blindsided.

And yes, I know I have no one to blame but myself for researching.

But $20 for driving a whopping 41 miles?! That is NOT right.

Although I think that pays for your highway repairs right?

I will admit... the highways up here ARE really nice.

Nope, Washington State

Oh idk anything about there.

I just know in IL there's a website that you can go online and pay for the tolls on.

Though I don't know how they would ever bill you if you didn't.

They billed me once this HUGE fricking bill from when my car was REPOED!

I had to pay $6 in the end because I have a transponder but she didn't care that my car was clearly on a TOW TRUCK.

I should have taken my plates >=[

[canada_socks 97]

What do you mean they bill you in the US? I definitely drove across US tolls and never got billed with a BC license plate. In fact when I was down here on BC plates after POE but before I imported my car, we took my car across toll bridges deliberately to avoid paying tolls.

Not sure how the video tolls work out on BC or in Washington, but on the 407, they most definitely bill you when you live in the USA. My husband has always gotten bills for his car and for my in laws car when drive it (of course it went to my in laws house).

There is an address tied to your licence plate, hense the video toll. They use the video to track you to bill you. Living in a different country does not make you immune. Even if you take a rental car on the 407, the rental comapny will bill you with a fee.

[VeeNDee 44]

Not sure how the video tolls work out on BC or in Washington, but on the 407, they most definitely bill you when you live in the USA. My husband has always gotten bills for his car and for my in laws car when drive it (of course it went to my in laws house).

There is an address tied to your licence plate, hense the video toll. They use the video to track you to bill you. Living in a different country does not make you immune. Even if you take a rental car on the 407, the rental comapny will bill you with a fee.

That is so odd... we've never gotten a bill from BC or Washington with the car with the other place's license plates and neither has family when they visited. In fact with the story I mentioned earlier you can see they tried to bill a BC person for the same WA plates since they didn't have the WA address info. I wonder if I can find that link back somewhere.

I accidentally ended up on a toll bridge the first time I visited him - there was nowhere to stop and pay just cameras and it was too late to turn around (thanks GPS for the warning-not), so I went over and never got a bill and it's happened multiple times since. If they had a place to stop and pay I would, but they don't if you are out of country. I wonder why it's different over there...

[The Mean Lady 604]

That is so odd... we've never gotten a bill from BC or Washington with the car with the other place's license plates and neither has family when they visited. In fact with the story I mentioned earlier you can see they tried to bill a BC person for the same WA plates since they didn't have the WA address info. I wonder if I can find that link back somewhere.

I accidentally ended up on a toll bridge the first time I visited him - there was nowhere to stop and pay just cameras and it was too late to turn around (thanks GPS for the warning-not), so I went over and never got a bill and it's happened multiple times since. If they had a place to stop and pay I would, but they don't if you are out of country. I wonder why it's different over there...

Our tolls can get confusing because they're SO big so I had to tell my MIL STAY TO THE RIGHT TO PAY!!! lolol

[VeeNDee 44]

So I managed to find back that story about the guy being billed wrongly:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2013/04/29/bc-port-mann-charges.html

I also looked up the 520 bridge by Seattle which is the toll one, and:

http://saabworld.net/f16/520-toll-bridge-near-seattle-free-canadians-25620/

Apparently it's free for Canadians for now... although not forever. I wonder when that will change....

[The Mean Lady 604]

So I managed to find back that story about the guy being billed wrongly:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2013/04/29/bc-port-mann-charges.html

I also looked up the 520 bridge by Seattle which is the toll one, and:

http://saabworld.net/f16/520-toll-bridge-near-seattle-free-canadians-25620/

Apparently it's free for Canadians for now... although not forever. I wonder when that will change....

That's impossible with our system.

My ex bf's mother took my ipass once to get through the tolls.

We actually drove an IDENTICAL car so the only difference is the plate.

They didn't charge it because they look at the physical plate.

They even ask you when registering what TYPE of plate you have like if you have one of those special autism plates or something.

[Autumnal 25]

As a former resident of Illinois for five years, I can confirm how confounding Chicago's interstate system can be. I didn't even blink at the autobahn in Germany and Austria, and I met the crazy winding roads of Scotland after a sleepless 8 hour flight with a mild smile. What's especially fun is when you have a S/W route together with two different interstates sharing roadway, like 80/94 or 90/94... But I digress.

Toronto has the worst traffic in Canada, and some of the worst congestion in North America up the 400/401/407. Trying to approach the megacity takes fortitude, patience, and a long approach of warning. I've specifically turned my GPS settings on to warn me more than 2 miles or 5 km out because those sudden exits have a nasty habit of sneaking up. Your pain is definitely shared by probably 40% of visitors in vehicles without previous experience navigating the tangle of odd signage and turn-offs being right now.

I personally like traveling the 407 and the other toll roads for the ease of navigation, but yes, you have got to have change or a transponder. They hit you with fees much harder than the IL authorities do. Like Illinois, the system will use your plates to determine where to send the bills. I've gotten bills on IL plates, BC plates, and MI plates from the 407ETR. Likewise, I've received toll notices for MI and IL and BC before I bought my i-Pass. There are a few jurisdictions where they won't chase outside their jurisdiction for money, but they're few and far between. Ohio, New Jersey, Illinois, and California are all happy to pounce on Canadians. We return the favour in Ontario by pouncing Americans. And the former toll route in BC, the Coquihalla, couldn't be escaped unless you went off the side of the mountain.

[The Mean Lady 604]

As a former resident of Illinois for five years, I can confirm how confounding Chicago's interstate system can be. I didn't even blink at the autobahn in Germany and Austria, and I met the crazy winding roads of Scotland after a sleepless 8 hour flight with a mild smile. What's especially fun is when you have a S/W route together with two different interstates sharing roadway, like 80/94 or 90/94... But I digress.

Toronto has the worst traffic in Canada, and some of the worst congestion in North America up the 400/401/407. Trying to approach the megacity takes fortitude, patience, and a long approach of warning. I've specifically turned my GPS settings on to warn me more than 2 miles or 5 km out because those sudden exits have a nasty habit of sneaking up. Your pain is definitely shared by probably 40% of visitors in vehicles without previous experience navigating the tangle of odd signage and turn-offs being right now.

I personally like traveling the 407 and the other toll roads for the ease of navigation, but yes, you have got to have change or a transponder. They hit you with fees much harder than the IL authorities do. Like Illinois, the system will use your plates to determine where to send the bills. I've gotten bills on IL plates, BC plates, and MI plates from the 407ETR. Likewise, I've received toll notices for MI and IL and BC before I bought my i-Pass. There are a few jurisdictions where they won't chase outside their jurisdiction for money, but they're few and far between. Ohio, New Jersey, Illinois, and California are all happy to pounce on Canadians. We return the favour in Ontario by pouncing Americans. And the former toll route in BC, the Coquihalla, couldn't be escaped unless you went off the side of the mountain.

THANK YOU! it's so nice to see someone else understands exactly what I'm talking about.

[VeeNDee 44]

And the former toll route in BC, the Coquihalla, couldn't be escaped unless you went off the side of the mountain.

http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=3044ae3a-ed05-465b-8305-78290b1b07cb

So glad they finally took off the Coquihalla tolls. It was worth it to pay them to save the time driving the other long route through the mountains, plus my aunts and uncles lived midway through it but seriously, 20 years more than paid for the cost of building it! It seems that once they put tolls up they start to rely on the income to do everything else instead of pay off the costs!

[hikergirl 277]

http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=3044ae3a-ed05-465b-8305-78290b1b07cb

So glad they finally took off the Coquihalla tolls. It was worth it to pay them to save the time driving the other long route through the mountains, plus my aunts and uncles lived midway through it but seriously, 20 years more than paid for the cost of building it! It seems that once they put tolls up they start to rely on the income to do everything else instead of pay off the costs!

It was funny watching the news the day the tolls closed. The just shut down as scheduled the one day after work and never opened again. Cars were stopping and looking around very confused.

Glad to see that the BC government kept to their word and didn’t just keep the toll running since people were used to paying it.

[Darnell 8,478]

Michelle is still a tardo, though. I'm thinking to send her a 'nice' postcard.

[Autumnal 25]

The Coquihalla was such a money grab, and terribly frustrating for anyone who commuted regularly from Kamloops or other points in the Okanagan, Kootenays, or Thompson River area to/from the Lower Mainland. BOO. The service didn't justify overrunning the tolls like that.