Grand Island Town Board: Council to discuss E-ZPass overcharges

By Larry Austin

Island Dispatch Editor

Overcharges from the new cashless tolling at Grand Island bridges is on the agenda for Monday’s Grand Island Town Board work session meeting.

A number of Island residents who pay 9 cents to cross the bridges with E-ZPass have discovered overcharges on their E-ZPass statements, prompting them to ask the board to investigate the matter with the New York State Thruway Authority.

Former Councilman Ray Billica said when he looked at his E-ZPass statement he was surprised to find out that on four occasions when he traveled over the bridges he was overcharged “as the electronic toll apparently read my license plate and charged me as another type of vehicle, not as my car. The overcharges ranged from $1.66 to $1.90.”

Billica said he called E-ZPass and was told his account would be credited. “But imagine how many people don’t check their E-ZPass account and are being overcharged,” he said.

Former Town Supervisor Mary Cooke, in a letter to the Town Board, said she had two mistakes for November, both times for $1.90 instead of 9 cents.

“It took a phone call and about 15 minutes to get a promise for a credit, which did happen on the next statement, which then had another $1.90 instead of 9 cents,” Cooke said.

She asked the Town Board to warn E-ZPass users to diligently check monthly statements and to ask NYSTA to find a long-term solution to this problem.

Some drivers may let the overcharge slide if they think the time it takes to right the wrong costs more than the wrong itself.

“I felt a bit silly spending another 15 minutes to get a credit of $1.81, but did it, and I’m hoping to find the credit (and no more mistakes) on the next monthly statement,” Cooke said.

The board will meet at 6 p.m. in the first floor conference room of Grand Island Town Hall.

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The next regular meeting of the Grand Island Town Board will be at 8 p.m. Monday, Feb. 4, in Grand Island Town Hall, 2255 Baseline Road.

• Grand Island Town Board
• Supervisor: Nathan McMurray
• Council members: Jennifer Baney, Pete Marston, Bev Kinney, Mike Madigan
• Send comments to the board at [email protected].