PORTSMOUTH, Va. - Tolls at the Downtown and Midtown Tunnels will increase on Jan. 1.
Drivers with an E-ZPass will pay 27 cents more during peak hours with the toll increasing to $2.77 for a 2-axle vehicle. Peak hours are from 5:30 am to 9 am and 2:30 pm to 7 pm Monday through Friday.
Off-peak and on weekends drivers will pay $2.10 per trip.
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As the tolls go up again, VDOT and Elizabeth River Crossings, the company that operates the tolls, have offered expanded toll relief. Beginning in November, residents earning $50,000 or less could be eligible and a driver can live anywhere in Hampton Roads as opposed to just Portsmouth and Norfolk.
A spokesperson for ERC says before eligibility expanded about 2,600 people participated in the program. In November, more than 6,000 people had enrolled. Next year, ERC will contribute $3.3 million to the program, the spokesperson said.
While those programs continue, there are also discussions at the local and state level about providing additional relief or even perhaps eliminating the tolls all-together.
"I just think it's absolutely ridiculous to hamstring Hampton Roads, especially here in Portsmouth, with those tolls. They're dreadful," said State Sen. Louise Lucas (D-Portsmouth).
ERC, which Abertis and Manulife Investment Management now own, has a contract with the state that lasts until 2070. The tolls can be increased each year, although they were not raised in 2021 due to the pandemic.
The Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization has called for the state to develop more solutions to the tolls.
A 2018 economic study done by Old Dominion University found the city loses out on nearly $9 million in sales each year, resulting in a reduction of about $500,000 in taxes collected.
Lucas said efforts to eliminate the tolls haven't advanced in the General Assembly. "We have not been able to make any progress because under this administration there seems to be a driving need to do more with tax relief and things of that sort rather than doing what is going to be a benefit to middle and lower income people," said Lucas.
Lucas says she's not backing down from the issue. "I will continue to push hard to try and make sure we bring those tolls down," she said.
For information on how to apply for toll relief click here.
