PA Turnpike removing tollbooths at interchanges as part of new tolling system
The Pennsylvania Turnpike has begun removing toll plazas east of Reading and on the Northeast Extension as part of its open-road tolling system.
Officials said the project started with the Pocono interchange (Exit 95) on the Northeast Extension (Interstate 476), with contractors removing the tollbooths and canopy from the interchange.
Officials said the Valley Forge interchange in Montgomery County is scheduled to be removed this summer.
Tollbooths at the Morgantown interchange in Berks County and at the Downingtown interchange in Chester County are scheduled to be removed in 2026.
Each interchange will be reconstructed to provide unobstructed traffic flow, officials said.
'The PA Turnpike has been a leader in transportation from the day we opened in 1940 as 'America's First Superhighway' and while traditional tollbooths made practical sense then, we now have more advanced and efficient systems that better serve today's 21st century customers,' Mark Compton, turnpike CEO, said in an announcement of the work. 'The switch to ORT (open-road tolling) modernizes the Pennsylvania Turnpike for today. We look forward to providing customers with a safer and more convenient travel experience on the PA Turnpike and better serving the communities we touch along the way.'
In the open-road system, tolls are charged electronically as travelers drive at highway speeds without slowing down or stopping. Toll plazas have been replaced by overhead structures — called gantries — located between interchanges on the highway. As drivers pass beneath the structures, equipment on the gantry and in the road processes E-ZPass or Toll By Plate transactions, they said.
This system reduces confusion and lane switching associated with traditional, stop-and-go tolling, they said.
The switch to open-road tolling in the east occurred in January. The system will launch on the mainline western section in 2027, and tollbooths on the mainline will be fully removed across the turnpike by the end of 2028.
Officials said open-road tolling will result in a $25 million yearly savings in interchange maintenance and operations costs and $50 million in yearly operational savings versus traditional collection methods.
They said the existing all-electronic systems have already led to reductions of up to 45% of CO2 emissions on the turnpike and that an additional 7% of emissions reductions will be realized when the system is in full operation. Toll plaza removal also reduces the turnpike's footprint by 150 acres, they said.
During demolitions, state police and turnpike personnel will be positioned to assist drivers.
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