The NYS Thruway Authority is installing gantries like this one at spots along the highway and at some entrance and exit points. The gantries are part of the cashless toll system that will go online next year. 

Construction for the cashless toll system on the New York State Thruway has begun.

Work has begun at about one-fifth of the sites along the 570-mile-long east-west interstate, which is also called I-90.

Preliminary work has begun as Exits 37 and 38 in the Syracuse area. But major construction won’t begin in the Syracuse area until 2020, according to a Thruway spokeswoman.

The Thruway is installing gantries along the highway that will eliminate the need for toll booths, tickets and toll workers. These scaffolds will track vehicle movement and read E-ZPasses. For those who don’t have an E-Z pass, the system will record license plates, then bill the owner of the vehicle.

Some gantries will be over the highway; some gantries will be at the entrance and exits areas.

This summer, the Thruway awarded a $355 million contract to a construction group to build the new system. The installation deadline in the contract is the end of 2020.

The entire cashless toll system will be turned on at once, after all installations are done. The brick-and-mortar toll booths will be removed in 2021.

The Thruway has set up a website to track construction. There is no current plan to change toll rates.

Source: Syracuse.com

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