Open road all-electronic toll conversion advances at New Hope-Lambertville Toll Bridge
LAMBERTVILLE, N.J. (Hunterdon County) — Work to convert the New Hope-Lambertville (Route 202) Toll Bridge to highway-speed, all-electronic tolling has reached a major milestone, the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission announced.
A newly installed toll gantry is now equipped with high-resolution license plate cameras and E-ZPass readers, allowing technicians to begin testing and calibrating the system. If all proceeds as planned, open-road all-electronic toll collection could begin as early as late May.
The cameras and E-ZPass equipment are mounted to a 30,000-pound steel monotube that was hoisted onto concrete towers along the Pennsylvania approach to the bridge in early December. Testing and calibration of the all-electronic tolling equipment are expected to continue over the next three months.
The project is replacing the bridge’s former southbound cash-collection toll plaza with highway-speed open-road tolling using E-ZPass and TOLL BY PLATE billing. It also includes repairs and improvements to the bridge’s Pennsylvania abutment.
This marks the first time a former cash-collection toll plaza operated by the commission is being replaced with an open-road all-electronic tolling gantry. The project is serving as a prototype for converting six other commission-operated bridges that previously accepted cash.
Like many toll agencies nationwide, the commission no longer accepts cash payments. Cashless all-electronic tolling — which includes lower E-ZPass rates and higher TOLL BY PLATE rates — is considered safer, more environmentally friendly and less costly to operate than manual, in-lane cash collection.
Construction began in June 2025 with equipment staging, lane shifts and removal of three former toll collection lanes.
Currently, southbound vehicles and trailers traveling from New Jersey to Pennsylvania are limited to a maximum width of 10 feet. Northbound vehicles traveling from Pennsylvania to New Jersey are limited to 11 feet in width. The speed limit through the active work zone is reduced to 25 mph.
Officials said travel restrictions are expected to ease once the completed open-road tolling gantry is placed into service. The commission does not collect tolls in the New Jersey-bound direction.
