Are Toll Roads Free For Motorcycles? Here's What Bikers Need To Know

In most cases, unfortunately, driving is not cheap. Lessons can be pricey, and then there are the matters of buying, fueling, maintaining, and insuring your vehicle. Even with all of that taken care of, the roads themselves can be costly, whether you're looking for somewhere convenient to park or you're being hit with tolls. One benefit of the biker life is that toll roads can be, but certainly aren't always, free. A toll road, across the United States and the world more broadly, is a means of generating the funding required to help maintain the vast, snaking road network that is so crucial to transport. As with so many things in the  U.S., though, the rules vary from case to case. 

While many drivers will often use apps like Apple Maps to avoid toll roads – and highways with Google Maps — there are times when a toll road is the best option despite its fees. When this happens, you might be glad that you're a biker rather than a car driver. Just as, in some cases, so-called dead red laws allow motorcycles to proceed past a red light that obstinately won't turn green, there are also instances when a biker can legally pass through a toll road for free.

Some places in the U.S. give a generous discount compared to drivers of larger vehicles, while others charge just the same as a car (should a toll road require payment on a per-axle basis). It all depends where you are.

The tricky thing to understand is that individual costs and methods used to determine toll road pricing differ so much. Toll roads that determine their costs by axle are typically cheaper, giving bikers an advantage since motorcycles have a lower axle count than larger vehicles. For instance, the Office of Highway Policy notes, "The maximum truck toll is based on a five-axle vehicle; a four-axle vehicle would be $1.30 and a three-axle vehicle would be $1.10," for Virginia's Powhite Parkway.

Motorcycles are typically two-wheelers with two axles, so bikers will sometimes pay a discounted rate on per-axle toll roads. This is because much larger vehicles, like heavier lorries, will have more of an impact on the road surface and so are afforded a greater share of the costs. The Federal Highway Administration notes, "Historically, these fees have generally been flat tolls that may vary by number of axles and distance driven, but not by time of day. Their primary purpose is to generate revenue."

Most commonly in the United States, these tolls are paid through E-Z Pass, a system that provides a transponder for your vehicle on signing up for an account. When passing through a toll point, the transponder will react to the antenna and automatically debit a pre-paid account with the appropriate toll amount.

It's most common for a toll road to charge per axle, in which case a biker will often pay the same rate as a car driver since the vehicles have the same number of axles. This isn't always the case, though. On Virginia's Chesapeake Expressway, the charge for a two-axle vehicle is $4.00, rising to $5.00 for a vehicle of three axles or more, but there's a flat $1.00 rate for motorcycles. This excludes them from the Chesapeake Expressway Discount Member Rate (which drops the 3-axle cost to $2.25 and disregards peak weekend prices), but it's a significant discount regardless. That three-axle vehicle will have to pay $10 to use that same stretch of road during peak weekends.

It's uncommon in the United States for toll roads to be entirely free for bikers, but there are prominent exceptions. For instance, regarding the express lanes on San Bernardino, California's I-10, SB Express Lanes notes, "Motorcycles are permitted to use the SB Express Lanes without a transponder and will not be charged a toll."

The most important thing is that bikers (just like any other road users) are aware of every toll road they may pass on their journey before setting off, and exactly what they'll need to pay for their specific vehicle in each case.