JS&SS

I went over the limit once. They only charged for the excess above 20 euros.

Jon-Bxl

There was about 100 Euro difference on our last rental for cars without a transponder, so we chose that and decided to have many a nice meal on the difference and ask a friend to pay the toll for us after we left.... who was happy to do it for free, but we offered lunch and the 4 of us had a great time together! Much more fun way to spend the difference!

I got car hire for 310 for 5 weeks all included Spain entry extra driver and insurances. Great deal... too good to miss for a transponder.

Back to earlier point I hope the rentco's have a no-transponder deal for people who don't want to use the m-ways.

Jon

Jon

shirley and anthony hide

That is an excellent deal. I am just wondering that given my scenario where a transponder is fitted to the car but still no charge to my card(up to now!)
(And this applied to more than one company I booked with)
Whether given the obvious shambles that must be going on behind the scenes in trying to marry up toll usage to individual clients if you did not pay any toll you would be debited/charged for non payment
Has anyone been charged for non payment after the event???
It would be interesting to find out,as if not ,maybe the toll people are relying on fear rather than actual enforcement to get the tolls paid.
It still seems a mess considering we are over 18 months since the tolls began

Jon-Bxl

Hi on one of the threads someone posted a scanned document with the fines on - huge bill.

However if you had a transponder then the rentco is responsible and you are in the clear - because its in the T+C's that they pay and charge you.

Its an admin overhead so maybe they dont do it all the time and just pay it.

The deal presented in the newspaper had a daily charge for the transponder with a max of 10 days charge for any rental (if I remember correctly).

As I mentioned I hope that they will give an amnesty as they have effectively agreed that they had a stupid system for visitors ..... that they now want to change. But not holding my breath...

Jon

Ingles

Easters here & the Spanish Tourist are arriving -they have been quoted as saying about the Pre Paid Tolls - "third world" - "chaos" + "we are not coming back"

http://www.jn.pt/PaginaInicial/Econo...ent_id=3135533

EMR

It strikes me that instead of constantly complaining about the toll sytem ( it is not going to change ) hotels and rental companies should offer to refund the cost of a return trip as part of their package.
What ever happened to pro active marketing, stop complaining get of your backsides and do something.
It might also shoot down the arguement that the lack of Spanish tourists is the fault of the tolls when it is actually down to the recession.

MikeJ

Not sure what the Spanish are complaining about - they have toll roads in Spain - usually near the borders!. The Easytoll system is simplicity itself, just drive up to the barrier, wait about 30secs while the ANPR takes a photo, put in your credit card, take the receipt and drive on. Job done in less than a minute, once and for all, no more stopping at tolls, going to the Post Office etc. Or is it that they just do not like queueing? If you don't want to use the BTA22 then you can exit at the next 2 junctions and avoid it altogether. Most Spanish day tourists don't get much further than Priaia Verde anyway.

Kath Las Colinas

Just a word of warning if you want to pay your tolls on a Saturday: we went to the post office to pay ours last Saturday to find that it was closed all day. I am sure it was open when we went before. So it is now even more difficult to pay them. No doubt John will be able to tell us somewhere we can pay other than the post office which is open on a Saturday but unfortunately I didn't know where to look.
Kath

EsuriJohn

The "Pay Shop" these are dotted about and have a sign on the outside. The kiosk just by the VRSTO ferry terminal & petrol station is one but the one we have used is in Monte Gordo in the pedestrianised street leading down to the Casino from the Navagores hotel. About halfway down on the LH SIDE it is in the front and appears to sell lottery tickets and just about everything else.

Jon-Bxl

The closest place to pay is Castro Marim, either at the PO or if closed there is a small payshop in a small street behind Corvo....

Jon

Kath Las Colinas

Thanks both, I knew I could count on you. I will remember next time. The post office in Castro Marim will be closed on Saturdays too.
Kath

shirley and anthony hide

Yesterday there was a queue of cars from the toll booths all the way back to the bridge! And it was hardly moving. the whole of the toll area was packed with cars and people just standing about.
Went past there today and there was a protest going on. Lots of police and cameras.Expect something in the local news tonight!

irismary

That´s all very well if you don´t mind a third party having access to your credit card any time they want.....hardly secure....and, we often lend our car to people and would get all the toll charges on our card.

I have no objection to toll charges per se, but at least in Spain there is a person taking the toll charges.

Fredbargate

Mike when I visit the Algarve it is a 335 km drive from home to the toll area by the bridge.
330 km on motorways with only one toll,

There are four manned booths four credit card lanes truck and car plus one magic box lane.
Most of these lanes are also interchangeable depending on traffic density.

MikeJ

There was some talk in the local Spanish press last year about the governments plans to toll the A49 from Sevilla to Portugal!!!

I don't want to be a proponent of the A22 toll - but the Portuguese government are perfectly within their rights to introduce polls (and before all the EU arguments come in - the EU were only concerned about discrimination in the application of the tolls not the tolls themselves). And there are NO toll booths on the A22 - once you have a transponder or an EasyToll account you can go as you please, PAYG. That's the whole point.