[DirectorTsaarx]

Originally posted by Trajan:
There are several toll roads around Washington DC. One of them is set as a toll-road to the Dulles Airport. If you are going only to the airport and back out again, then you can ride in the "Free" internal lanes. If you are using the road to commute to and from work/home then you pay $.50 (US) to enter and I think $.50 to exit. I may be wrong on the amounts, but that's approximately right.

There is another toll-road that was initally built using private monies with some state/federal assistance. The toll's for this road (The DUlles Greenway) are substantially higher. I think they are in the $2.00 (US) range, with no charge to exit, though I may be wrong.

I don't mind paying the tolls, if the highways are kept up and continuously updated. So long as the roads are repaired, plowed, patrolled etc...then I am happy...though poorer.

Cheers!
Trajan

Technically, the Dulles Greenway is just an extension of the Dulles Toll Road, connecting out to Leesburg. I forget what the toll is at the main plaza, and if you're heading to Leesburg I don't think there's a toll for exiting. But if you're heading back towards Dulles Airport there's a toll for exiting. Or, if you go that far, a toll at the main plaza. Same thing at the other end (Tyson's Corner area): there's a main toll plaza with a 50 cent charge; certain exits/entrances have tolls of 25 cents (and the exit/entrance at Route 28 has a 35 cent toll) depending on how far they are from the main plaza.

Yeah, I know the above is only of interest to those of us who live in the area, but since I commute to work on that road I thought I'd provide some enlightenment. I'd also like to point out that tolls enforce a certain amount of supply/demand theory on traffic: that is, some people would prefer to use other roads rather than pay tolls. Therefore, the cost of using the road is less than the cost of extra time and/or hassle to use other roads. Which means less traffic for me to deal with. Oh yeah, that reminds me - I also know someone who routinely (as in every single workday) goes to the gas station at the airport, buys $1.00 - $2.00 worth of gas, and then uses the "free" lanes to commute to the office. If he gets stopped, he can prove that he "had business at the airport" and he gets to use the "free" lanes (which, most importantly for the morning commute, have VERY little traffic - after all, he can't be saving much money after paying higher prices for the gasoline).