Date:  Wednesday, December 01, 2010

Contact: Patty Michaud, WSDOT Communications, 206-716-1133

GIG HARBOR – The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) today reminded emergency-response agencies that having a Good To Go! account is the best way to use the tolled Tacoma Narrows Bridge without potential confusion or unnecessary charges.

Under state law, emergency vehicles responding to a bona fide emergency are not charged a toll or issued an infraction. But because the current photo system in use on the bridge can’t distinguish vehicle types, emergency-response agencies must contact WSDOT’s tolling customer center within seven days to deduct the charge.

Non-emergency travel by fire districts, police agencies and other emergency responders is tolled.

The vast majority of emergency vehicles in the area have Good To Go! accounts. When they cross the bridge during an emergency, they contact the customer center to deduct the charge. If the vehicle doesn’t have an account and uses the Good to Go! lane, the vehicle owner can contact the customer center to prevent being issued an infraction.

Recently, a Jefferson County Fire District 2 aid vehicle transporting a critically ill patient to a Tacoma hospital did not have a Good to Go! transponder, bypassed the toll booths and then received an infraction of $52.

“What the driver did was reasonable, and we wouldn’t have expected them to stop at the toll booth when transporting someone in dire need of emergency medical assistance,” said Craig Stone, WSDOT Toll Division director. “If they had contacted us afterwards, we could have worked with them and prevented them from receiving a notice of an infraction. We just needed to know that it was an ambulance responding to an emergency.”

Stone noted that this was an unusual situation because the Jefferson County Fire District rarely uses the Narrows Bridge and, therefore, didn’t know what to do. He said WSDOT has now contacted them and explained how they can get the ticket dismissed in the future, even though they already opted to pay the fine.

A new photo toll system will be in place next spring that would have addressed this type of transaction. The new option will allow drivers to pay for their toll by mail and it will give them 80 days to respond to the bill before receiving a ticket. Emergency vehicles responding to an emergency will continue to be exempt from a toll.

For more information about Tacoma Narrows Bridge tolling, visit www.wsdot.wa.gov/tolling.

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