Ohio Turnpike tolls to rise an average 14.5%

BEREA (AP) -- The Ohio Turnpike Commission on Monday approved an average 14.5 percent toll increase for cars.
Under toll rates going into effect Jan. 1, a driver who pays 8.95 to travel from Indiana to Pennsylvania on the Ohio Turnpike will pay 10.25.
Truck tolls, cut sharply two years ago to increase the number of rigs on the turnpike, will increase 8 percent.
That would leave a 241-mile trip by a 40-ton rig with a 33.50 toll, up from the current 31 but 21 percent less than the 42.45 toll before the temporary reduction.
In January 2005, the turnpike began a program to attract trucks away from secondary roads with a temporary discounted rate, rolling back commercial-vehicle tolls by an average of 25 percent.
The higher tolls will allow the turnpike to complete the three-lane widening project and to replace the original 1955 service plazas at each end of the road, the commission said.