Tolls from Wisconsin to Michigan
June 4, 2018 6:35 PM Subscribe
In a few days I will be renting a car from Enterprise and will be driving from Milwaukee to the lower peninsula of Michigan. I plan on taking I-294 so how much should I expect to pay in tolls? Will I be able to pay in cash? How many tolls are there? Will there be an extra hurdle to clear because I will be driving a rental?
I've tried looking this up for myself, but I'm having a difficult time finding clear answers for my questions. The Illinois Tollway site isn't all that helpful for me.
I've tried looking this up for myself, but I'm having a difficult time finding clear answers for my questions. The Illinois Tollway site isn't all that helpful for me.
If you have an E-ZPass from another state, you can bring that with you.
posted by Ian Scuffling at 6:39 PM on June 4, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Ian Scuffling at 6:39 PM on June 4, 2018 [1 favorite]
You can pay cash at all the open-road tolling locations along the Tri-State Tollway, but they charge you double in cash what you pay with an EZ-Pass. Also, there are some tolled exits that will/can not take cash. I can't compute for sure what the cumulative tolls will come to, but figure on at least $10 one-way at the EZ-Pass rate. I recommend you look into whether renting an I-Pass (which is Illinois' version of EZ-Pass) from Enterprise will be less expensive than paying cash. Plus, open-road tolling is almost always way quicker than the cash lanes. (Also, if you decide to take the turnpike through Indiana the I-Pass will cover it so you don't need to take a ticket and then pay when you exit.)
posted by DrGail at 7:27 PM on June 4, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by DrGail at 7:27 PM on June 4, 2018 [1 favorite]
Your rental will likely have an EZ Pass transponder in it already (cars I’ve rented in Michigan had them). Activating it will cost you something like $3.50 per day that you have the car, and they’ll tack all the tolls onto your bill.
I’ve done close to the same route, just coming from Madison instead of Milwaukee. If you don’t want to do the EZ Pass thing, there should be a cash window on the right side of every toll plaza. You can also plot out how much it’ll cost on the Illinois toll roads website (which is also where you’ll go if you miss a toll) by picking the entry and exit points from the system. I’m pretty sure the whole trip was under $20 a few years ago. I also think the highest individual toll might have been $6 or so, but that might have been on the Chicago Skyway, which you’ll probably avoid. Tolls are generally more in the $1.50 range.
posted by LionIndex at 7:30 PM on June 4, 2018 [1 favorite]
I’ve done close to the same route, just coming from Madison instead of Milwaukee. If you don’t want to do the EZ Pass thing, there should be a cash window on the right side of every toll plaza. You can also plot out how much it’ll cost on the Illinois toll roads website (which is also where you’ll go if you miss a toll) by picking the entry and exit points from the system. I’m pretty sure the whole trip was under $20 a few years ago. I also think the highest individual toll might have been $6 or so, but that might have been on the Chicago Skyway, which you’ll probably avoid. Tolls are generally more in the $1.50 range.
posted by LionIndex at 7:30 PM on June 4, 2018 [1 favorite]
Here's the Illinois Tollway's toll calculator. I believe your entry point will be "I-94 EB: Russell Road/I-94 Wisconsin", and your exit point will be "I-294 SB: I-80/94, Illinois-394." If that's correct, the site says that your total toll will be $8.80.
If you scroll down to the Tri-State Tollway section on this page, all of the toll plazas listed in the direction on the map are labelled as "manned toll plazas", which means that there'll be attendants there to give you change if all you have is a $20 bill.
posted by Johnny Assay at 7:48 PM on June 4, 2018 [2 favorites]
If you scroll down to the Tri-State Tollway section on this page, all of the toll plazas listed in the direction on the map are labelled as "manned toll plazas", which means that there'll be attendants there to give you change if all you have is a $20 bill.
posted by Johnny Assay at 7:48 PM on June 4, 2018 [2 favorites]
I did the same road (in reverse) many, many times while my ex lived in Madison. I did it a couple of times without an IPass (Illinois' version of EZ-Pass), and I will never do that again Your rental car company will definitely be able to hook you up.
It's gonna be about $10 in cash (or with your credit card), half that with the IPass. I want to say there's six or seven toll plazas. Being in a rental car won't matter.
posted by Etrigan at 7:51 PM on June 4, 2018
It's gonna be about $10 in cash (or with your credit card), half that with the IPass. I want to say there's six or seven toll plazas. Being in a rental car won't matter.
posted by Etrigan at 7:51 PM on June 4, 2018
You should call the rental car company and ask how they handle it. In my experience the highway bills the tolls to the rental car company by the license plate and they bill you later. No extra fees.
posted by bleep at 7:52 PM on June 4, 2018
posted by bleep at 7:52 PM on June 4, 2018
If you don’t have an EZ Pass and don’t have cash on you, you can pay the tolls on the website afterwards. If you stop at a booth with a person in it they will give you a flier with the information.
Edited to add: there’s no extra charge for paying online if you do it within 7 days
posted by jeweled accumulation at 8:27 PM on June 4, 2018 [1 favorite]
Edited to add: there’s no extra charge for paying online if you do it within 7 days
posted by jeweled accumulation at 8:27 PM on June 4, 2018 [1 favorite]
You might be stuck paying cash. Enterprise charges a flat rate per day for unlimited toll usage, if you've got a multi-day rental it's going to be cheaper to pay even at the cash rate.
If you're truly just passing through, go ahead and budget the $8.80 SB and $9.20 NB. Don't worry about getting off the tollway at any cash-only exits, you'll pass by 4 oases where you can stop for gas/restroom.
The non-toll option is US 41, which is a divided highway and built to interstate standards for most of its length. Then stay on I-94 once they meet up, and you'll end up in the same spot where I-294 meets I-94. This does take you smack dab through downtown Chicago, though, so timing is important. Though traffic gets heavy on 294 as well during rush hour AND and it's a longer route.
posted by hwyengr at 9:50 PM on June 4, 2018
If you're truly just passing through, go ahead and budget the $8.80 SB and $9.20 NB. Don't worry about getting off the tollway at any cash-only exits, you'll pass by 4 oases where you can stop for gas/restroom.
The non-toll option is US 41, which is a divided highway and built to interstate standards for most of its length. Then stay on I-94 once they meet up, and you'll end up in the same spot where I-294 meets I-94. This does take you smack dab through downtown Chicago, though, so timing is important. Though traffic gets heavy on 294 as well during rush hour AND and it's a longer route.
posted by hwyengr at 9:50 PM on June 4, 2018
If you think you're ever going to do this trip (or another road trip in the ez-pass area) again, it may be worthwhile to pay the cash fare until you get to the first oasis, and just buy an I-Pass transponder there. It will be active immediately, and you can use it for the rest of the trip. That way, you can get the discounted rates for the remaining toll plazas. As near as I can tell, there's no inactivity or monthly fees for an I-pass, so you can just keep it for as long as you like, or return it to get your $10 deposit back.
One caution: Make sure you pay attention to what you're told at the rental car pickup. At the Boston airport, every car had a transponder mounted on the windshield, with a sliding shield that you had to close/open based on whether you wanted to use their transponder or not. Other places, the car might have a mount for a transponder, but if you don't pay for one, they don't give you one. I'm not sure what they do in the Chicago area, as I've never rented a car there.
posted by yuwtze at 7:31 AM on June 5, 2018
One caution: Make sure you pay attention to what you're told at the rental car pickup. At the Boston airport, every car had a transponder mounted on the windshield, with a sliding shield that you had to close/open based on whether you wanted to use their transponder or not. Other places, the car might have a mount for a transponder, but if you don't pay for one, they don't give you one. I'm not sure what they do in the Chicago area, as I've never rented a car there.
posted by yuwtze at 7:31 AM on June 5, 2018
When I used Enterprise in Texas, it was a flat per-day of toll road usage fee. So if I drove on a toll road on Monday from the airport and Friday to the airport, but not the in-between days, I only paid a toll road fee for Monday and Friday.
posted by jillithd at 8:47 AM on June 5, 2018
posted by jillithd at 8:47 AM on June 5, 2018
just buy an I-Pass transponder there. It will be active immediately, and you can use it for the rest of the trip. That way, you can get the discounted rates for the remaining toll plazas. As near as I can tell, there's no inactivity or monthly fees for an I-pass, so you can just keep it for as long as you like, or return it to get your $10 deposit back.
I'm a Milwaukee resident who frequents Illinois, and assuming you'll be driving during regular business hours, this is what I would recommend you do. The rental car transponder will be ex.pen.sive, cash will cost you double, and paying online is more hassle than it should be.
Buy a transponder, don't think about tolls for the rest of the trip, and then return it or just be set the next time you venture south.
posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 10:02 AM on June 5, 2018 [2 favorites]
I'm a Milwaukee resident who frequents Illinois, and assuming you'll be driving during regular business hours, this is what I would recommend you do. The rental car transponder will be ex.pen.sive, cash will cost you double, and paying online is more hassle than it should be.
Buy a transponder, don't think about tolls for the rest of the trip, and then return it or just be set the next time you venture south.
posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 10:02 AM on June 5, 2018 [2 favorites]
And just for more tolling fun, please keep in mind that if you stay on I-90 through part of Indiana, that's also a toll road. For the Indiana Toll Road, you'll get a ticket at the start of the tolling and then pay when you get off the toll road. There will be toll booths where you can pay cash. That system uses EZpass, not I-Pass.
posted by hydra77 at 10:26 AM on June 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by hydra77 at 10:26 AM on June 5, 2018 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: So, here's my story for you future Googlers with the same query as I:
Said eff it and went with cash. I took I-94 through the city. Yep, through the city. I hadn't been in Chicago for three years and I was in no hurry, so I got to check out that awesome skyline again. Sure, we hit a few slowdowns, but that allowed me to gawk some more. Paid all associated tolls with cash so I had to find the correct lane, but it was simple and didn't slow me down too much. The tolls through Indiana were paid with a credit card at unattended booths. Then my final toll on the trip was at the Mackinac Bridge and the booth attendant was a very nice Native American dude listening to some really sweet rock n roll.
I think just going with cash is the most hassle-free way to drive through Chicagoland if you are doing that as a one-way deal.
posted by NoMich at 7:09 AM on June 19, 2018 [2 favorites]
Said eff it and went with cash. I took I-94 through the city. Yep, through the city. I hadn't been in Chicago for three years and I was in no hurry, so I got to check out that awesome skyline again. Sure, we hit a few slowdowns, but that allowed me to gawk some more. Paid all associated tolls with cash so I had to find the correct lane, but it was simple and didn't slow me down too much. The tolls through Indiana were paid with a credit card at unattended booths. Then my final toll on the trip was at the Mackinac Bridge and the booth attendant was a very nice Native American dude listening to some really sweet rock n roll.
I think just going with cash is the most hassle-free way to drive through Chicagoland if you are doing that as a one-way deal.
posted by NoMich at 7:09 AM on June 19, 2018 [2 favorites]
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