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New Jersey Bridge Toll Collector Reflects On Era’s End

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The reminiscences of a toll collector ending a 40-year career provide the framework for an article on the impending conversion of Cape May County, New Jersey, Bridge Commission facilities to all-electronic tolling. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the April 1 transition to cashless collection will eliminate a familiar personal experience that’s been part of vacationers’ arrivals at the seashore for the better part of a century.

The newspaper also looks at the deteriorating condition of the agency’s five toll bridges and the county’s 23 other spans. The pivot to cashless collection will save an estimated $400,000 to $500,000 annually, money the county can apply to bridge repair and replacement projects that will have cost between $603 million and $890 million over a 15-year period ending in 2035.

Online Satellite-Based Tolling Conference Begins Tomorrow

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Toll Insight kicks off a two-day webinar on GNSS tolling tomorrow. The event will explore technology that’s become a standard for commercial vehicle distance-based tolling in Europe and that Asian countries, particularly India, are planning to implement in place of RFID-based collection.

The conference agenda and registration information can be found on Toll Insight’s website.

Additional “Key” USDOT Staff Appointments Announced

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On Friday, USDOT Secretary Sean Duffy announced appointments to several more senior positions that do not require US Senate confirmation.The announcement did not include information about the professional backgrounds or experience of the appointees

Railway Supply provides a little information about the new appointees’ roles.

USDOT Rescinds State EV Charging Program Approvals, Freezes NEVI Program Funding

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Bloomberg (via Transport Topics) reports, USDOT has suspended the distribution of National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula (NEVI) Program funds to the states, “following through on one of President Donald Trump’s first directives to roll back U.S. subsidies for plug-in vehicles.” The action was revealed Friday when FHWA posted a February 6 memo to state DOT directors. FHWA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The memo’s author, longtime FHWA staffer Emily Biondi, stated, Trump administration officials have decided to review the program’s underlying policies and the guidance issued under the Biden administration. They plan to issue revised guidance that aligns with Trump administration policies in the spring. Until new guidance is forthcoming, FHWA “is also immediately suspending the approval of all State Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment plans for all fiscal years. Therefore, effective immediately, no new obligations may occur under the NEVI Formula Program until the updated final NEVI Formula Program Guidance is issued and new State plans are submitted and approved.”

The Hill reports, “The suspension marks the latest Trump administration move to freeze funds already approved by Congress, which Democratic lawmakers have repeatedly pointed out is forbidden under the 1974 Impoundment Control Act.”

AASHTO Accepts Nominations For Annual State DOTs Awards Program

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The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) announced the opening of the nomination portal for the 2025 America’s Transportation Awards competition.

The AASHTO-sponsored program, now in its eighteenth year,  recognizes state DOT programs and projects “that make their communities better places to live, work and play. The awards focus on improving safety and driving down roadway fatalities and serious injuries; getting more out of the existing system; implementing new technologies and innovations; and projects that improve overall quality of life and enhance community development.”