PA has high tolls. OH has very reasonable tolls, as does Indiana. It is far cheaper to run across the Indiana turnpike than it is to take 30, just based on all the stopping and starting. Add into that the time savings. My time isn't free.

A great example of this is out in Denver on the E470. If you are at the Flying J on Interstate 70 in Aurora, and you need to get to Interstate 76, you have two logical choices to get there:

1. Take Pena Blvd to E470 North, to I 76, or

2. Take I 70 east to I 270, to I76.

Taking the toll road is 14.89 miles, and will cost you $8.00. Taking 270 is 26.02 miles. You will burn an extra 2 gallons minimum taking 270, depending upon traffic. At current fuel prices, that equals your toll. So now it comes down to time. E470 is wide open in that area, and maintaining highway speed is quite easy. 270 is in a very congested area, especially where 70 meets 270. You are guaranteed to have an extra 15 minutes added to your trip, but in reality, you are looking at about 30 minutes at least. I don't know about you, but my time is worth more than $16 an hour.

Whether you give the money to a toll collector, or you give the money to a truck stop, you are still giving the money away. I would rather keep the wear and tear off my truck from starting and stopping as much as possible, and save the time I can by taking a toll road that makes financial sense to take.

 

Yes - that is a New York thing. I don't believe there is any other state that does that.

 

I seem to recall that Massachusetts used to do it. I haven't paid a toll up there in years, so I could be mistaken. Perhaps someone who runs their authority up there could tell us. The only toll I usually pay in New York is on I-84 if I go to New England. I think it is around $8.

By the way you could take 20 or 6 rather than taking 30. The travel time is better. You have a little stretch on 20 from Toledo over into Illinois that may slow you down a bit.

 

Which figure Rev?
$45K? Made it up based on what I think Steve may have paid for his truck.
$10K? Made it up based on what I think I 20 year old star car may be worth.
12 years? Steve's been operating for 2 plus he said he would keep his truck another 10 which means he is depreciating it over 12 years. Note that I am using depreciation as an accounting term in this case, not a tax term. Depreciation for tax purposed is an entirely different thing. I guess the correct term would have been ammortization, or perhaps "cost of ownership".
1.8 Million miles? 3000 miles a week x 12 years.
Cost per mile increased by $.02? $45K - $10K = $35K cost of ownership/1,800,000 miles = $.02/mile.

 

I am another that will run the toll roads if it saves me miles.

i.e. Weedsport, NY to Syracuse, NY on I90 costs $4.65 but it saves 10 miles IIRC. Fuel and driver alone is ~1.20 a mile x 10 miles means it costs me $12.00 to save $4.65 in tolls.

 

Running a toll road in Mass has no effect on anything. Running the toll road in NY means you only pay for their NY tax on the non toll roads. NY doesn't make that much of a difference. I've written them checks for $1.00 and less at the most.

And no Rev, I didn't post the IFTA worksheet, it's something that all independent operators are given once a quarter to fill out and calculate our tax. That's probably why you don't know about it working for someone else.

I'm sure you can find it some place to download and fill out like I said many posts ago. And it's because of this worksheet and the different route and fueling scenarios that I went through before I based my conclusion that it doesn't make that much of a difference to rack your brains trying to figure out which state is cheaper.

So, up to you if you still want to debate or do the worksheet math. Like Rank said, "Just do it, I'm done with you", or something like that. :lol:

 

Never mind. :lol:

I'm just glad I don't live in a fantasy world like our hero Hobby Trucker who thinks that his truck is going to last another 10 years. :lol:

 

And why shouldn't it? Can you post some facts and data to prove your statement?

 

it may last,it certainly won't be cost effective to keep it running then