How do Texas toll roads work?

[TLAK]

I'll be traveling to Galveston Island next weekend. Google says there are tolls on the Houston bypass and then a bridge toll to get on the island. How does toll collection in Texas work? I've read that they do not have toll booths, but photo the vehicle and bill the owner of the license plate either by TXTag or mailing an invoice. But my FR3 and tow car both have Illinois plates. I have an I-pass transponder.

How should I handle this? I'm not trying to avoid paying the tolls, but I would like to avoid getting pulled over or fined.

[CC75]

There used to be an unknown loophole that if you were out of state they would not bill you. Not sure if that has changed. TX may exchange license information with neighboring states. I know OK honors TX transponders. You can get a transponder from one of the TX toll places by mail. They charge you $40 deposit on credit card on file, and as you use the toll, they charge you in increments of $40. What you do not want to do, it accumulate so much toll, without payment that if you ever get stopped, the officer gets to fill his citation quota for the month. I recommend you contact them directly. Phone number on site I use:

https://www.ntta.org/Pages/default.aspx

[EdJunior]

Better to get a TXTag. While all the tags in general play nice, the TX Tag will cover all toll roads in Texas. I am not sure about out of state. But you can get a TX Tag via mail. You are correct that there are no more toll booths. And I'm not sure I would trust the picture taking charging. Like CC75 said, the best way to avoid any trouble is to call them directly. TX Tag website is https://www.txtag.org/en/home/index.shtml or call them toll free at 1-888-468-9824.

And the bridge crossing into Galveston is not a toll...at least not that I know of. There is a bridge crossing the Houston Ship Channel that is toll, but that is now integrated into the Sam Houston Tollway for the most part. That is the only bridge that I'm aware of. You can take the ferry across from Galveston to Bolivar Peninsula for free.

Good luck, and keep us posted.

[Stevemc]

We are from Missouri and traveled to south Texas and back last year. We were gone about 2 weeks and got a bill for tolls in the mail about a month after we got back home.

[Ole Buzzard]

Have made a few trips up to Goshen for the big rally. There are no tolls. Get an atlas(old school) as gps will probably tell you something different. From Effingham south the following Interstater are all free. 55 to 57 to 40 to 30 to 69/59 to 45 which runs you right into Galveston. Check a map for some of the bypasses. Only real traffic you will have will be in Houston, but by timing it right it shouldn't be any problems. To go anywhere to camp we have to tow thru Houston. Have never found a better way if timed right.

[lmiken]

I have being thru the Dallas/Ft Worth area twice and accidentally ended up on a toll road each time (can be confusing going thru all those interchanges) and I have never received a bill.

[Stevemc]

I can't recall the specific highways we were on but the toll roads we drove on were really nice highways. We had our rv Garmin set to take us the fastest route but didn't have it set to avoid tolls.

[cmalberto]

The only toll bridge into Galveston is coming in from the West - I believe it is a couple of bucks...not really supportive of big rigs coming through(why yes there is a story to be told).

Otherwise if you come in from the other side of the coast(coming from East), it is by Ferry(free) - wave/honk when you go by...otherwise from Houston, it is 45 south - no tolls. Houston has tolls that get you around(loops; beltway 8 and 99) the city...main interstates are not toll.

What we have found from experience is that you do go through a toll road - and most are un-manned these days - you will get an invoice in the mail about 20-30% higher than if you and a TX-TAG or whatever they are calling them these days. Not the end of the world...unless they go unpaid I suppose.

[ckabrahamson]

I've never had a problem with tolls in TX. They just mail you a statement at the end of the month, with the total. I would think there would be no way to pull you over if they can't read your plate, because you don't get any feedback that your tag was read properly when you pass under the reader.

The Texas Toll Tag is interoperable with the Oklahoma Pike Pass, and since the Pike Pass is accepted in Kansas, I would assume the TX tag would work there too. I just wish they would adopt a nationwide standard transponder so we don't have to sweat it out every time we travel cross-country.

I don't know what route you're planning on taking, but if you're planning on coming down I-44 from St. Louis to Oklahoma City, I-44 is a toll road in Oklahoma (but it's in good shape, and has nice, wide lanes).

I-35 southbound from Oklahoma City to Dallas is in good shape (a few construction areas, but nothing huge). I-35 splits into I-35E (to Dallas) and I-35W (to Ft. Worth) in Denton, TX. I-35E is a holy mess from Denton pretty much all the way to Dallas. It's one huge construction zone, and has been for many years. I avoid it at all costs. The lanes are exceptionally narrow, and there are concrete barricades abutting the road (no shoulder at all). You'll also spend a lot of time stopped in traffic. I've never navigated my coach through there, and hope to never do it. After the construction, Dallas traffic sucks. I've had times where it has taken me over 3 hours to drive across the metro. Routing through Ft. Worth (I-35W) always seemed to work better.

I doubt you'd route through Austin, TX (also on I-35), but if you're ever in that neighborhood: Austin traffic on I-35 is a nightmare. But, there is a turnpike that is a loop around Austin on the east side of the city. Best money you'll ever spend...

Hope this helps. Safe travels!
Carl

[TXFolkie]

Texas Toll roads are not all the same but they take each others tags.

In the Houston area most are run by the Harris County Toll Road Authority. HCTRA does NOT have the bill by mail option. Well they sort of do but it's a violation and will cost much more than the toll itself.

Most Central Texas toll roads are run by the TxTag group and North Texas has another one. There are a bunch of them @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...roads_in_Texas

I use the TxTag for all of them. Don't blow through a Texas toll and assume you'll get a bill because it may be for a lot more than the price of the toll.

There are no tolls on I-69 (US59), I-45 or I-10 though there are some toll express lanes. I don't know of any toll exit or bridge into Galveston unless you get there via the ferry.

[tdiller]

Originally Posted by TLAK

I'll be traveling to Galveston Island next weekend. Google says there are tolls on the Houston bypass and then a bridge toll to get on the island. How does toll collection in Texas work? I've read that they do not have toll booths, but photo the vehicle and bill the owner of the license plate either by TXTag or mailing an invoice. But my FR3 and tow car both have Illinois plates. I have an I-pass transponder.

How should I handle this? I'm not trying to avoid paying the tolls, but I would like to avoid getting pulled over or fined.

A year ago we were traveling through Dallas Ft. Worth and somehow wound up on the tool loop. Yep no toll booths or anything. I asked when we got to our destination about if they would send a bill or ticket. Never heard from them.

[Iggy]

I travelled in the Dallas area and took a toll road with my AZ car.
Over a year passed and they sent me a bill for $24 after they figured out I was from AZ.

[dustman_stx]

Originally Posted by TXFolkie

Texas Toll roads are not all the same but they take each others tags.

In the Houston area most are run by the Harris County Toll Road Authority. HCTRA does NOT have the bill by mail option. Well they sort of do but it's a violation and will cost much more than the toll itself.

Most Central Texas toll roads are run by the TxTag group and North Texas has another one. There are a bunch of them @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...roads_in_Texas

I use the TxTag for all of them. Don't blow through a Texas toll and assume you'll get a bill because it may be for a lot more than the price of the toll.

There are no tolls on I-69 (US59), I-45 or I-10 though there are some toll express lanes. I don't know of any toll exit or bridge into Galveston unless you get there via the ferry.

I think this is pretty accurate. I know that Christmas a year ago I was visiting my brother who lives in Cypress just outside of Houston. We were leaving there and heading toward Beeville. Told my brother what route I planned to take, which included a toll road. I don't have a toll tag and assumed it would be just like all the other toll roads in the DF/W area and they'd bill me. Not so according to him. He told me I'd get a bill, alright, in the form of a citation and it would be VERY expensive. Not sure how they expect travelers to know these things. So I had the joy of dragging my 35' TT down many miles of city streets to avoid a VERY long out of the way route.

[clintbonnie73]

Speaking of Toll Roads... I got fined $25 plus the toll ($4) for traveling 91 Express Lanes east of LA in November.. Their reason for the fine was that I did not have an "account" with them.. being from Washington State.. Yes, they photo'd the license plate and sent the bill in the bill a month later.. Pretty unfair if you ask me.. Be ware..

[JoeyNiq]

Just do yourself a favor and setup an account and have them mail you a tag. I use the EZTag which is good on all toll roads in the state of TX except some road going to the Dallas Airport. (I live in Houston and won't be using that airport anyway)

www.hctra.org Harris County Toll Road Authority

As someone previously mentioned, your CC will be billed $40 to set up the account and establish a balance. $15 will be deducted for the EZTag.

Now... I've been told I should notify them when I tow one of my trailers so they will have it on file, but I never have. I have a triple axle 5er and when I check my account, I see where I have a higher charge for the extra axles.

Just avoid the headache and get the tag and you will not have to deal with elevated fines, fees, etc

[Moose61]

You will probably be coming through Texarkana using Hwy 69/59 South. This route will take you on the east side of Houston to I 45 S which intersects just on the south side of Houston . Follow that all the way to Galveston. No tolls and easiest route between 9:00am & 3:00pm .

If you must use the tollway here is their number
281-875-EASY (3279)

[rmoore0852]

We love the TX tollways and use them whenever possible. Around Houston be careful though. Apparently there is a beltway around there that charges an extra $5 PER TOLL BOOTH PASSED if you don't have a Texas tolltag or some other type of Tx account. I agree with clintbonnie, really unfair. When I got the $75 toll bill I called up madder than a wet cat. The nice lady on the phone was very helpful, telling me that at the bottom of every sign, way down under all the multi-axle toll rates, there is a $5 "non-customer" charge. And this charge applies at every toll gate you pass through. After I explained rather vehemently that when I am in my wife's VW I don't need to look at the multi-axle tolls nor do I try to read every line of the sign that's going by at 75 mph, she waived all the $5 fees and I happily paid the toll rates. And now we have TollTags on both of our vehicles.

[DebbieHM]

I travel to Texas often. I get a bill by mail. We're from WI. They have changed the billing system in the past couple of years. They are much more effective in finding us! Last bill was for $4.24.

[CedarCreekWoody]

For what it is worth the Galveston Ferry is free. Even if you don't arrive that way take a few hours later for a scenic cruise across the bay and back.

[montgomg]

Wive and I recently camped on Galveston Island. On the way home (to Missouri) we took I45 north to Houston, then the Sam Houston Parkway (toll) around the east side of Houston to I69 north toward Texarkana. There were booths and for four axles the toll was $5,25 one way