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Toll Plaza Designs

Started by roadman65, March 21, 2019, 11:56:59 PM

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roadman65

Many of the toll roads in the US each have their own style of designing toll plazas.  The NY State Thruway and the Florida Turnpike used wavy canopies over the lanes (with a point above each lanes).  The Garden State Parkway used green plain ordinary booths and the NJ Turnpike now uses them, but some of the older plazas of the NJT had a slant canopy with the high end over the part facing the freeway and the slant down toward the exit road and the NJ Turnpike in letters below the slant down.





Here I have a photo of the  Will Rogers Turnpike Mainline Plaza near Big Cabin, OK. https://www.flickr.com/photos/54480415@N08/40473179893/in/dateposted-public/
Notice its basically a sign gantry with the canopy attached to it over the lanes.


Any other photos whether past or present.
Every day is a winding road, you just got to get used to it.

Sheryl Crowe


Brandon

"If you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention." - Ramsay Bolton

"Symbolic of his struggle against reality." - Reg

roadman65

The Jane Addams Tollway mainline uses an overhead walkway for collectors to cross the highway.  Where I work in Florida, we have tunnels under the pavement/
Every day is a winding road, you just got to get used to it.

Sheryl Crowe

abefroman329

Quote from: Brandon on March 22, 2019, 04:48:31 PM
ISTHA uses these as their newest ones:
Mainline: https://goo.gl/maps/mwHRDuvdy2C2
Ramp: https://goo.gl/maps/j73VLKn8q772

Older models:
Mainline: https://goo.gl/maps/BPDghrAVxyF2 https://goo.gl/maps/4jTuVbQG5m92
Ramp: https://goo.gl/maps/S6EwHuEMEcJ2 https://goo.gl/maps/9nyHMkKNcVS2
And then there's the REALLY old ones, which basically look like your bottom-right link, only painted black.

Brandon

Quote from: roadman65 on March 22, 2019, 10:55:45 PM
The Jane Addams Tollway mainline uses an overhead walkway for collectors to cross the highway.  Where I work in Florida, we have tunnels under the pavement/

York Road Plaza 51, there's a tunnel under the road between the toll plaza building and the current toll plaza.  It used to extend all the way across I-88 until 2006 or so when the current configuration was built, and the eastbound plaza was moved to Meyers Road.
"If you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention." - Ramsay Bolton

"Symbolic of his struggle against reality." - Reg

Rothman

Mass Pike had tunnels, too.
Please note: All comments here represent my own personal opinion and do not reflect the official position(s) of NYSDOT.

hbelkins

Kentuck's toll booths were typically located under bridges. This is one on the Cumberland Parkway at the US 68/KY 80 interchange in Metcalfe county.



Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.

abefroman329

Quote from: hbelkins on March 25, 2019, 12:18:21 PM
Kentuck's toll booths were typically located under bridges. This is one on the Cumberland Parkway at the US 68/KY 80 interchange in Metcalfe county.


That's efficient use of space.

roadman65

#8
Oklahoma did that on the tolled US 412 west of Tulsa.  This way everyone pays at the same plaza.  No need to add ramp tolls as all ramps merge before the plaza and depart after them.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/54480415@N08/47407969992/in/dateposted-public/
Here is one on the Will Rogers in Oklahoma.  This is their ramp toll configuration, I believe as two of them I surpassed had this kind of set up.  This was obviously not the original 1957 plaza here,  it looks like it was built after 2000 for sure.
Every day is a winding road, you just got to get used to it.

Sheryl Crowe

kphoger

One gripe I have about the toll collection being under a bridge is that it's difficult to see the booths as you approach.  Even with advance warning signs, I still sometimes wonder, OK, so where is it? until I'm almost there.
Keep right except to pass.  Yes.  You.
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Male pronouns, please.

Quote from: Philip K. DickIf you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use them.

jeffandnicole

The very first toll plazas built on the NJ Turnpike didn't offer tunnels.  When toll plazas were added or rebuilt, then tunnels were included in many of those designs. 

It's possible the first Interchange to include tunnels within the design was the former Interchange 6 barrier plaza - the connection between the mainline NJ Turnpike and the PA Turnpike was built about 5 years after the NJ Turnpike opened.  Interchange 9 was rebuilt just a few feet (literally) to the east, and included tunnels in the rebuild.  Interchange 7A and current day Interchange 11, to name a few, also weren't original to the Turnpike, and had tunnels included within their design as well. 

Today, I believe every toll plaza Exit 6 and Interchange 18 were not part of the original Turnpike.  Regardless if they've been added as a new plaza location or reconstructed, most if not all of them have included tunnels.

NJ Turnpike toll plazas with tunnels generally feature stairways every 2 or 3 lanes.

When Interchange 1 was rebuilt, it was built with an overhead bridge rather than a tunnel.  The bridge is in 3 sections: One is over all of the entry roadway, and there are two separate bridges over the 16 lane exit plaza.  There are 4 elevators and two stairways to access the exit lanes; 2 elevators and one stairway to access the entry lanes.

The widest toll plaza not to feature tunnels is probably Interchange 4.  It was 5 lanes when originally built, and 9 lanes today. 

US 89

Quote from: roadman65 on March 25, 2019, 11:38:05 PM
Oklahoma did that on the tolled US 400 west of Tulsa.  This way everyone pays at the same plaza.  No need to add ramp tolls as all ramps merge before the plaza and depart after them.

Assuming you're referring to the Cimarron Turnpike (US 412, not 400), there are two of these, located here and here.

There's also one on the HE Bailey Turnpike (I-44). Does anyone know of any other examples on an Interstate?

Ian

Quote from: hbelkins on March 25, 2019, 12:18:21 PM
Kentuck's toll booths were typically located under bridges.

Reminds me of the toll booth at the north end of I-295 where it meets I-95 (Maine Turnpike) in Gardiner, which lies underneath the former overpass of the long-gone ramp between NB 295 to the SB Turnpike.

Aerial view
Ground level view
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Rothman

What annoys me is that I don't remember any Mountain Parkway toll booths being under bridges.  That means zilch about 40 years after the last time I paid a toll on it.

I have a better memory of the amounts of the tolls than the appearance of the booths.
Please note: All comments here represent my own personal opinion and do not reflect the official position(s) of NYSDOT.

Bobby5280

The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority is (slowly) doing away with their old toll booths under bridges. The concept might seem like an efficient use of space. But there are drawbacks.

Modern toll roads have automated toll collection lanes where traffic can breeze through the toll gate at normal driving speeds. Such a thing is impossible with these old toll gate under bridge designs. There is only a single PikePass lane and the clearance is so narrow that traffic has to slow way down to 30mph to move through the gate. That sucks. Then there's an exact change lane and a lane with a toll booth attendant who has to charge two different tolls depending on whether traffic continuing on the turnpike or exiting onto a cloverleaf ramp. The limited number of lanes can create traffic backups.

The Walters toll gate on I-44 is supposed to be replaced sometime within the next couple or so years. And it needs to happen soon. The OK-5/US-277/US-281 bridge over I-44 at that toll gate is in pretty bad shape. The new toll gate will be built immediately South of the existing bridge in the interchange footprint. I don't know how they'll redo the ramps. The remodeled interchange could be similar to the re-built interchange on the Muskogee Turnpike at the OK-51 exit. Or it could be done like what they did at the OK-9 exit on the Indian Nation Turnpike.

Other toll gate under bridge things they need to remodel:
OK-3 exit on Indian Nation Turnpike.
OK-99 exit on Cimarron Turnpike.
US-177 exit on Cimarron Turnpike.

hbelkins

Quote from: Rothman on March 26, 2019, 11:31:14 PM
What annoys me is that I don't remember any Mountain Parkway toll booths being under bridges.  That means zilch about 40 years after the last time I paid a toll on it.

I have a better memory of the amounts of the tolls than the appearance of the booths.

There were two toll booths on the four-lane section of the Mountain Parkway. One was located west of the Clay City exit and it was a standalone barrier.

The toll booth at the Slade exit was on top of the KY 11 bridge. The geometrics at that exit required the four-lane to cross over the intersecting road.

There were also two toll booths on the two-lane section. One was located at the partial KY 191 Campton exit, and there are a few old pictures of it floating around on Facebook. (Try the Mountain Parkway Expansion FB page; they repost it from time to time). The other was a standalone barrier in the Gullett community of Magoffin County, between the bridge over the (mumble) Fork of the Licking River -- I 'mumbled' because it's variously known as the left fork or middle fork -- and the Gifford Road overpass, which is now the site of the route's newest exit.


Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.

Stephane Dumas

Here a picture of the former toll booth on Laurentian Autoroute (A-15) in Laval in 1973. Some folks tried to imagine a way to avoid tolls.
https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/history-through-our-eyes/0125-city-eyes-toll

Scott5114

Quote from: US 89 on March 26, 2019, 06:35:28 PM
Does anyone know of any other examples on an Interstate?

The Kansas Turnpike (I-35) southern terminal was once located under the bridge at the US-160 (Wellington) interchange. It was later rebuilt further south so that the bridge and interchange could be reconstructed. This explains these otherwise redundant signs. I believe the sign on the right originally said something like "Wellington Exit/Exit After Toll Plaza" or something like that, but it was changed to the current text after the sign became pointless.
uncontrollable freak sardine salad chef

plain

I've seen pictures online of toll plazas in Quebec that were laid out in the "cloverleaf configuration" like OK (and formally KY & CO), except the booths weren't under the overpass.
Newark born, Richmond bred

roadman65

I liked the toll plaza that was once on I-95 at I-85 in Petersburg.  Because I-95 exited the toll road, it was really a ramp toll despite it being the main part of the trumpet interchange.  The Turnpike mainline exited itself there and continued south on I-85 for a bit where the southernmost mainline plaza was.  It was in between the NB exit of I-95 to I-85 south and the I-85 NB merge onto I-95, this way those on I-85 who just payed the toll bypass the toll on I-95 and those on I-95 North going South on I-85 do not pay the toll on I-95 either but exit and pay on I-85 itself.

Basically its (was) a ramp toll that is on the mainline of the seamless I-95 freeway to freeway connection but keeps the turnpike toll system still function.
Every day is a winding road, you just got to get used to it.

Sheryl Crowe

plain

Quote from: roadman65 on May 06, 2019, 11:20:22 PM
I liked the toll plaza that was once on I-95 at I-85 in Petersburg.  Because I-95 exited the toll road, it was really a ramp toll despite it being the main part of the trumpet interchange.  The Turnpike mainline exited itself there and continued south on I-85 for a bit where the southernmost mainline plaza was.  It was in between the NB exit of I-95 to I-85 south and the I-85 NB merge onto I-95, this way those on I-85 who just payed the toll bypass the toll on I-95 and those on I-95 North going South on I-85 do not pay the toll on I-95 either but exit and pay on I-85 itself.

Basically its (was) a ramp toll that is on the mainline of the seamless I-95 freeway to freeway connection but keeps the turnpike toll system still function.

All true.

What's also interesting about the RPT was the number of trumpet interchanges along the route, despite the fact it was not a ticket (closed) system.


Adding to that I-85/I-95 junction (original Exit 2), there were also:

Exit 4 Colonial Heights (today's Exit 54)

Exit 7 Falling Creek (today's Exit 67)

Exit 8 Bells Rd (today's Exit 69)

Exit 9 Maury St (today's Exit 73)

Exit 10 Broad St (today's Exit 74C)


Exit 2 was set up exactly as you described.

Exits 4 & 7* were set up in a similar fashion, except the "mainline" toll plazas here really were for the mainline, with side toll plazas where all of the ramps converged (basically exactly like the New Hampshire Tpk).

Exits 8** & 9 had only ramp plazas, to & from the north.

Exit 10 had no tolls whatsoever (it, like Exits 3 & 6, was a "halfway" point between toll sections).

Many of these trumpets were modified somewhat in the 1970's (and also see everything below), though the tolls remained until 1992.


*Exit 7 became a directional interchange but with basically still the same setup, though the ramp toll became split

**Exit 8 started as an "almost trumpet" but became a real one, with the ramp toll moved and split. Both configurations here were still tolled only to & from the north 


Of course you can see all of this on Historic Aerials.
Newark born, Richmond bred

lepidopteran

Quote from: jeffandnicole on March 26, 2019, 01:13:00 PM
The very first toll plazas built on the NJ Turnpike didn't offer tunnels.  When toll plazas were added or rebuilt, then tunnels were included in many of those designs. 
When the Turnpike was widened recently from Exit 6 to Exit 8A, interchange 8 was completely rebuilt, as in, the toll plaza moved to the other side of the highway!  The new toll plaza, being larger due to a new direct connection with Route 133, has a tunnel.  The website for the turnpike widening has pictures of the inside of the tunnel while under construction!  With the widening completed for several years now, I suspect the site's days may be numbered, so visit while you can.



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