Non-freeway toll roads (other than tunnels/bridges)

[A.J. Bertin]

Besides tunnels and bridges, does anyone know of any examples of toll roads that are not freeways? Maybe super-2's or two-lane rural roads with little to no cross traffic?

[J N Winkler]

Without getting into foreign examples such as Mexican toll roads (which frequently do not have full control of access), there are toll bridges such as the SR 370 (Nebraska-Iowa) toll bridge across the Missouri River at Bellevue.

[briantroutman]

This isn't exactly current, but the West Virginia Turnpike was largely two lanes from the '50s all the way up through the '80s I believe there were still some two-lane sections (not counting the Memorial Tunnel) until about 1987.

[Brandon]

Besides tunnels and bridges, does anyone know of any examples of toll roads that are not freeways? Maybe super-2's or two-lane rural roads with little to no cross traffic?

IIRC, the road up Pikes Peak is one.  The Chickasaw Turnpike in Oklahoma is toll, two lanes, and has full control of access.  The West Virginia Turnpike used to be one until the 1980s, when the road was rebuilt.  Don't know of any others off hand.

[vdeane]

NY 431 is toll after the last turn-off before the Whiteface Mountain Summit.

[1995hoo]

The Mount Washington Auto Road in New Hampshire is one.

I believe a portion of the 17-Mile Drive in California is a tolled non-freeway based on the color stripe used on the map.

[agentsteel53]

CA-120 across Yosemite is effectively a $20 toll for a two-laner across the Sierras.

[NE2]

Most examples above are park entrance fees (or two-lane freeways). 17 Mile Drive is an interesting case, since it's basically a gated community that you can pay to enter.

Many others are technically bridges, with approaches that are untolled for local traffic, but aren't obviously bridges to the layman. For example:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adams_Avenue_Parkway - over the Weber River
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osceola_Parkway - over Shingle Creek (plus ramp tolls at SR 535)

One that has no bridges except over a freeway at the south end: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goldenrod_Road_Extension

The latter two charge no tolls for bikes. The Goldenrod Extension is a city-designated bike route and has bike bypass lanes to the right of the toll booth.

[A.J. Bertin]

Most examples above are park entrance fees (or two-lane freeways).

I didn't know there was such a thing as a "two-lane freeway". Interesting!

[wxfree]

The proposed Loop 9 around Dallas is being discussed as a "tolled bridges" project.  My understanding is that it would be built below freeway standards and have tolls on bridges.  This would make some free use possible while longer-distance use would still require payment of tolls.  People will stop at traffic signals and still get to pay tolls, so I'm sure it'll be a big hit.

While not actually a toll road, having a series of toll bridges has somewhat the same effect.

Edit - Also, Section 6 of the Chisholm Trail Parkway, currently under construction, will be a two-lane road with a concrete divider and recurring passing lanes.  That's about the southern half of the road, from FM 1187 west of Crowley to US 67 in Cleburne.

[cpzilliacus]

Besides tunnels and bridges, does anyone know of any examples of toll roads that are not freeways? Maybe super-2's or two-lane rural roads with little to no cross traffic?

Skyline Drive, which hugs the crest of the Blue Ridge from Front Royal to Afton Mountain in a N-S direction in Virginia's Shenandoah National Park, is effectively a two-lane toll road, though the toll is characterized by the National Park Service as an "entrance fee."

[cpzilliacus]

This isn't exactly current, but the West Virginia Turnpike was largely two lanes from the '50s all the way up through the '80s I believe there were still some two-lane sections (not counting the Memorial Tunnel) until about 1987.

Similarly, the approach roads to Maryland's Francis Scott Key Bridge (part of the Baltimore Beltway, once signed as Md. 695 and still officially recorded that way, even though the signs have long read I-695) were once one lane in each direction with full access control.  The east side approach from Baltimore County, past the (now-defunct) Sparrows Point steel mill complex, was reconstructed as a four lane freeway in the 1990's.  The western approach (through Anne Arundel County and the southern tip of Baltimore City) was expanded to four freeway lanes in the 1980's. 

The bridge itself has always been a four lane crossing.

[1995hoo]

Here's the FHWA's list of non-Interstate toll roads in the USA as of January 1, 2011: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/tollpage/t1part4.cfm

[kkt]

CA-120 across Yosemite is effectively a $20 toll for a two-laner across the Sierras.

That's not a toll for the road, it's a fee for park entry.  You can enter the park, pay $20, and go out again the way you came in if you want.  And 120 is not the shortest route across the Sierra from much of anywhere, even when Tioga Pass is open.

[agentsteel53]

That's not a toll for the road, it's a fee for park entry.  You can enter the park, pay $20, and go out again the way you came in if you want.  And 120 is not the shortest route across the Sierra from much of anywhere, even when Tioga Pass is open.

how does one most effectively get from Bishop to Fresno?

[NE2]

By not going to Bishop. Seriously, if you're taking the slow route you shouldn't mind either taking more slow route or paying for some scenery.

[kkt]

That's not a toll for the road, it's a fee for park entry.  You can enter the park, pay $20, and go out again the way you came in if you want.  And 120 is not the shortest route across the Sierra from much of anywhere, even when Tioga Pass is open.

how does one most effectively get from Bishop to Fresno?

There's not as much difference in travel time as you might think.  According to Mapquest, via Tioga Pass it's 5 hours 20 minutes, while via CA-58 it's 5 hours 35 minutes.  And through the park, of course, no commercial vehicles are allowed, you have a line to get in, and the possibility of getting snow in a high pass; via CA-58 you have none of that.  If you go through the park, it should be because you want to see the park, because it's not the optimal route for just getting there ASAP.

[briantroutman]

Here's the FHWA's list of non-Interstate toll roads in the USA as of January 1, 2011: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/tollpage/t1part4.cfm

I noticed "Mosey Wood Toll Road" on the FHWA list in my home state of PA. I'm surprised I never heard of it before. It's not far from both I-80 and the NE Ext. of the PA Turnpike near White Haven. The road is just a few miles connecting PA 940 with residential developments along PA 903, but apparently it's a very useful shortcut for locals.

On Google Street View, you can see it looks like any other two-lane rural road, except there's a tiny "Private Toll Road Ahead" sign near the PA 940 intersection (http://bit.ly/ZShvTr) and a toll plaza just beyond (http://bit.ly/12VywNI).

Interestingly, it appears to have been a public road in extreme disrepair that neither the state nor the municipality wanted to repair, so a land developer bought it for $1, sunk a few hundred thousand into repairs, then started charging a 25¢ toll to recoup his costs. Then, the PA PUC took him to court for operating a "turnpike" without their permission. http://bit.ly/ZwpAh4

I'll have to check it out next time I'm back in PA

And also, I remembered the TX 255 toll road near Laredo that was built privately in the late '90s, went bankrupt, sold at auction to an insurance company, and then re-sold to TxDOT a few months later at nearly double the price.

[national highway 1]

17 Mile Drive on the Monterrey Peninsula - non residents must pay a toll to access the road.

[oscar]

That's not a toll for the road, it's a fee for park entry.  You can enter the park, pay $20, and go out again the way you came in if you want.  And 120 is not the shortest route across the Sierra from much of anywhere, even when Tioga Pass is open.

how does one most effectively get from Bishop to Fresno?

There's not as much difference in travel time as you might think.  According to Mapquest, via Tioga Pass it's 5 hours 20 minutes, while via CA-58 it's 5 hours 35 minutes.  And through the park, of course, no commercial vehicles are allowed, you have a line to get in, and the possibility of getting snow in a high pass; via CA-58 you have none of that.  If you go through the park, it should be because you want to see the park, because it's not the optimal route for just getting there ASAP.

I often visit hot springs in Bishop, the Mammoth Lakes area, and other points on the east side of the Sierras.  Other hot springers I meet there often use CA 58, and sometimes CA 178, as "safer" routes to the Central Valley.  But they also pay attention to whether Tioga Pass is open, and when it is they like to use CA 120 as a shortcut.

For Mammoth Lakes and points north, CA 108 is another option, but considered a rather sucky one (I agree) even without the park entrance fees.

[NE2]

Interestingly, it appears to have been a public road in extreme disrepair that neither the state nor the municipality wanted to repair, so a land developer bought it for $1, sunk a few hundred thousand into repairs, then started charging a 25¢ toll to recoup his costs. Then, the PA PUC took him to court for operating a "turnpike" without their permission. http://bit.ly/ZwpAh4

http://www.natja.org/node/1370

Split Rock Resort was built in 1941 and now sits on 1,200 acres. I asked about the $1 toll booth at the entrance and it was explained that since no city, county or state entity wanted to maintain the road the owners decided to offset the maintenance by charging a toll (refundable for guests).

[3467]

http://www.120now.com/

This was an initial plan for a tollway with partial not full access control not full. The current plan is for it to be a full access control parkway as part of the Illinois 53 project.
This idea of partial access control is now workable in the age of open road tolling

[3467]

I will save you the pain of going through all the studies and just link you the relevant page of the Feas Study



8.3. Limitations of User Fee Funding Only
A feasibility level study was developed to assess the financial feasibility of a bypass route of Illinois Route 120 with
user fee collection from electronic transponders only. The electronic user fee collection was found to be technically
feasible on the bypass section of the Central Lake Thruway due to the restriction of access between the
intersections. Illinois Route 120 users without electronic transponders would continue to use the old Illinois Route
120 alignment.
The analysis determined that implementing user fees on the new route will provide some but not all the funding
needed to fully construct the facility. The study developed a recommended user fee of $0.25 to $0.30 per mile (in
2020 dollars) that would balance traffic diversion from a user fee imposition with the travel time benefits associated
with the bypass (see Appendix I). Total project funding from user fees is anticipated to be between $170 million to
$240 million.
This total project funding from user fees includes the use of Federal TIFIA loans. TIFIA loans are limited to 1/3 of
the total project cost. TIFIA loans are available at a low interest rate and are paid back through user fees. The use
of TIFIA loans is contingent on the collection of user fees.
User fee collection on an arterial road with controlled access is an innovative proposal new to projects of this type in
the nation. The bypass corridor will support the use of user fees by limiting access and ensuring the corridor
provides a traffic benefit to the user.

[cpzilliacus]

Another (former) two-lane toll road that had at least one or two intersections at-grade was the Alligator Alley, formerly signed as Fla. 84, now I-75.

[lordsutch]

Loop 49 in Tyler is a tolled super 2 freeway; much like Toll 255 above, it's designed to be upgraded to a full freeway if ever needed, but unlike Toll 255 it's fully grade-separated already.

Toll 550 near Harlingen is basically just a toll overpass at the moment, with most of the route being untolled frontage roads without full access control.

Historically there were a couple of Kentucky toll roads that were partially/completely super 2 freeways.  The then-"Bee Line" FL 528 was originally a super 2 freeway toll road east of Orlando.