Gripe!

I am going to have a bit of a gripe here.  It's about something totally random - toll roads.  There are several toll roads in the Brisbane area, most notably the Gateway (more like HATEway), the Clem 7 tunnel, and the new Airport link tunnel.  If you use them all the time, you would just get a little beepy pass to put in your car and then money is automatically deducted.  However, if you are a casual user like me, you just go online and pay the toll company.  There are a few problems with this.  Let me outline them:

1. You have three days to pay the toll.  You can't do it right away (since you are obviously driving) and by the time you get to wherever you are going, it's likely that you will have forgotten about the stupid thing because it's not a regular occurrence in your life.  Once you have passed the three day mark, they consider you an 'unpaid toll' and then you get a lovely notice in the mail charging you $25 for the toll + an administration fee.  ARGH.  But you just FORGOT!  It's not like you were purposely trying to avoid paying the damn thing.

2. You could VERY EASILY go through one of the tunnels and not even realize you have to pay a toll.  I'm sure tourists do this ALL the time.  For example, Ipswich Road just turns into the Clem 7 tunnel.  You need to be in one of the outside lanes as you're driving toward it, or else...oops, you're in the damn tunnel!  This happened to me during our brief interlude with our first car (good old Scratchy) in my days of inexperienced Brisbane driving.  I most certainly did not want to go into the tunnel, but there I was...and I emerged right into Brisbane rush hour traffic downtown.  Anyhow, the point is, they are not signed very well and you really could just end up in one of them as a tourist.  Then, all of a sudden you see a bunch of random charges on your credit card, because the car rental company has received unpaid toll notices for their car which you were renting at the time. 

3. When you do remember to pay the darn things, as I did today after using all three toll roads over the weekend, they make it as difficult as humanly possible.  You would think that with a bunch of toll roads in the same city, that perhaps you could pay all the tolls on one website.  But no!!!  You get to go to THREE different websites and enter the same information into each one!!!!  You have to figure out that what you need is a 'one time pass' and then calculate the approximate time that you were using the damn roads, enter payment details, and cross your fingers that it all worked.  It took me half an hour this afternoon just to do this one simple thing. 

These travellers agree, the toll system is bloody annoying!

Hello, recently I drove from NSW to near Bundaberg. and back, bypassing the Brisbane CBD via what appeared to be State owned roads, passing near the airport. I did not see any indication that I was on a toll road, unlike the Sydney ones which are clearly marked as one approaches and then enters them. Also unlike the Sydney toll roads there were no phone numbers displayed to then pay for such usage of these roads.
How is a stranger to know if one is on a toll road unless its marked as such ?
I have now received a notice with a massive Administration fee for not paying the tiny amount for the journey. Fair Go Mate, Queensland is supposed to be a nice place to visit.

Just got a notice from a hire car company with a massive admin fee to pay telling me to expect an infringement notice for not paying a toll which I’m sure will also have a massive admin fee attached. Don’t remember seeing any signs to say I ever went on a toll road. What a crock! So greedy.

Your toll system is a nightmare for visitors to your part of the world. We got a hire-car in Adelaide and drove up. Nice drive until the Brisbane toll terrorists hit. Like Sydney and its cashless buses (effectively preventing visitors there from using them) having cashless tolls is a nightmare. We enjoyed the vist very much but the Brisbane tolls caused the most headaches.

I’m a Brisbaneite and frankly I think the way we label our toll roads is horrendous. If you are driving towards the Story Bridge they practically say the only way to get to the Sunshine Coast is to go via Clem 7. No hint that it will save you bucks to just drive over the Story Bridge and make your way from there. Can Do Newman absolutely stuffed up our roads with his tunnels which most Brisbaneites avoid!!

Very stupid system. If you are a visitor to Queensland, and you are not familiar with this system, you suddenly find yourself on a toll road, and no other options indicated. If you do not have a mobile, or internet access, or Australian bank account.  How do they expect you to jot down a phone number or internet address, while you are driving down a freeway?

/rant