Tollway questions [Houston]

You apparently have to pay a security deposit of $15 when you start up the program, but other than that, you just have to prepay a certain amount and that gets deducted when you go through the toll booths. No service fee other than the deposit (which is a one-time fee and is refundable if you discontinue service).

You apparently get a discount on the tolls, too.

That's according to the HCTRA website, by the by.

I have a tolltag here in Dallas. It's great. I've heard that they're planning on making it so Houston ez-tags work on the Dallas tollroads and the Dallas Tolltags work on the Houston tollroads.

 

I think the prepayment is $40.

 

I don't know if they've changed this or not, but my dad used to have to pay a dollar a month as a rental fee for that little thingy in the windshield... But hey, if you're saving some money on cheaper tolls, then what's a buck a month anyway?

 

Yea, if the stated toll is $1.00, it only costs $.75 if you have an EZ-Tag.

 

also, whenever your balance falls below $10, they will automatically pull $40 out of your checking (or CC)

 

I'm pretty sure they've already made Dallas tags work in Houston. A lot of the ez-tag signs now have a little sign on them for, and I could be wrong as to it's exact name, "TexasTag." IA couple weeks ago I asked one of the people in the booths what that was and the lady told me it was for ez-tags from Dallas (using the same lanes as Houston ones). Not sure if Houston tags work in Dallas yet, though.

 

I remember reading that they were going to do that (allow the tags from either city work in the other one), but I hadn't heard that it was done yet.

 

They work, I just picked one up in Houston and it works in Dallas as well...That is pretty sweet...It's a $40 pre-payment and replenishes to $40 when it hits $10...$15 deposit and $1 per tag rental fee...I think you get the discount when it's $1.25 ($.25) and $2.00 ($.50), but I'm not sure...

 

I already have used the Dallas toll tag on the Houston tollroads. They have most of the major booths working... the entry ramps you still have to use change, though -- the NTTA tolltags don't work there yet.

 

They do discount. Man... $2 tolls.... yikes. That's one of the reasons I don't know why people still want to use change instead of getting a toll tag. "Lessee... I'll just go ahead and slow down and wait behind this next guy and pay more instead of getting a tag and zipping through at the speed limit and paying less". The only thing I can think of is paranoia or they rarely use the tollways.