Somebody’s not paying up, eh?
Canadian drivers are racking up over a million-dollars-a-year in unpaid tolls, penalties and different charges on Port Authority crossings in New York and New Jersey, in accordance with paperwork reviewed by The Put up.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey mentioned 400 Canadian motorists find yourself in debt collections totaling $100,000 to $140,000 in unpaid tolls and costs each month — which means $1.4 million in annual misplaced income for the company, a bidding doc the company despatched to debt collectors confirmed.
That’s nonetheless only a fraction of the general revenue the PA has misplaced from toll evaders and deadbeats, with practically $400 million misplaced per yr, or $1.53 billion over 4 years.
“Ultimately, this takes a toll on the livelihoods of the good citizens of Staten Island and other motorists,” mentioned Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella, whose constituents must pay a toll to drive into New Jersey.
“Thank goodness there is a new sheriff in town in President Trump, who is trying to restore a sense of accountability in the country. Hopefully, that results in people crossing the border and bridges lawfully — whether you are from Canada or otherwise.”
The PA crossings are amongst America’s busiest, together with the George Washington Bridge and Holland and Lincoln tunnels. The PA additionally oversees the Bayonne Bridge, Goethals Bridge and Outerbridge Crossing connecting the Backyard State and the Empire State.
Trump ought to take up the problem of Canadians’ huge toll debt as he imposes tariffs on Canadian produced items, mentioned Assemblyman Michael Tannousis, additionally chairman of the Staten Island Republican Occasion.
“The Trump administration needs to step in and address the issue of Canadians who are toll deadbeats,” mentioned Tannousis.
“If I were visiting another country and didn’t pay my bill,” Tannousis mentioned, “I would be held accountable before I could leave the country.”
A supply near the bidding course of mentioned the PA must rent a debt service collector with a Canadian enterprise license to have any likelihood of accumulating the debt.
A lot of the toll violators don’t have E-Z Go and are billed by mail after an image of their license plate is recorded however many ignore the payments and don’t pay.
Toll violations totalled $350 million in 2020, $396.4 million in 2021, $387.6 million in 2022 and $399.2 million in 2023, the PA mentioned. This contains court docket charges, penalties and curiosity along with the uncollected tolls.
PA officers instructed debt collectors 60% of toll violators are from New York (31%) or New Jersey (29%), which suggests 40% are from out of the area. The common toll debtor account is $330, in accordance with PA paperwork.
Final yr, PA mentioned it’s toll evasion operations resulted in practically 17,000 summonses — a 27% improve over 2023.
The PA insisted it’s on the case and ratcheting up enforcement of toll scofflaws, although it declined to offer any extra specifics on what’s owed from Canadian scofflaws or all deadbeats.
“We are rigorously addressing the issue of toll evasion and illegal vehicles on our roadways through aggressive enforcement of the enhanced penalties for wrongdoers recently provided by both states,” mentioned PA spokesman Seth Stein.
“We work closely with our fellow law enforcement agencies and the state motor vehicle departments to catch scofflaws and employ technologies like license plate readers that allow us to identify and detain egregious violators and drivers who seek to deter enforcement by techniques to obscure their license plates and other identifiers,” Stein added. “Toll revenue helps fund the region’s essential infrastructure and we expect every driver to pay their share.”
These figures don’t embrace unpaid MTA-run tolls and costs, with The Put up reporting final week that deadbeat drivers racked up $5.1 billion in over 4 years — together with $1.4 billion final yr.
