Lee County Clarification

The piece (TRnl#45 Jan 00 p18) on Lee County’s success with variable pricing on two toll bridges accurately reported the shifts to the shoulders of traffic eligible for the discount. We should have pointed out however that the impact on overall traffic patterns has been much less – because cash payers and those taking out period subscriptions are not eligible for the discounts. And so they don’t change their travel times. At present only about a quarter of motorists are eligible, and therefore influenced by, the variable pricing.

So to increase its effectiveness the toll authority has to increase the proportion of motorists incentivized to travel off peak. Officials there say it is happening steadily as cash payers become transponder users. But they also acknowledge that the subscription plan – allowing unlimited trips for a fixed fee - are a major obstacle. Until recently more than half the transponder users in the Lee Co system were subscribers to unlimited trip plans, and hence not price sensitive.