Tolls on the A22

[sam]

Looked at the petition - what does B.I. ou C.C. mean as you must fill this in?

[sam]

As some people have made comparisons with the London Congestion charge and I've never had to pay this I decided to look it up:-
You can pay the Congestion Charge in a number of ways. It's quickest and easiest if you register with us.

CC Auto Pay
Online
By mobile text messaging (SMS)
By phone
By Automated Telephone Service
At a shop
By post
Seems pretty simple and easy to pay. Especially as you can register, and pay on-line. I do not see that this compares at all with the arduous payment methods for the A22. If Portugal adopted similar methods then I'm sure we would not be having this debate.

[laserblazer]

I've said before that this is the best forum I am a member of and one of the most informative.
The only thing that lets it down is personal attacks on individuals by a minority because theydo
not agree with a posters views.
It is a shame

Snaj1

What's that got to do with tolls on the A22?

[HampshireRich]

As some people have made comparisons with the London Congestion charge and I've never had to pay this I decided to look it up:-
You can pay the Congestion Charge in a number of ways. It's quickest and easiest if you register with us.

CC Auto Pay
Online
By mobile text messaging (SMS)
By phone
By Automated Telephone Service
At a shop
By post
Seems pretty simple and easy to pay. Especially as you can register, and pay on-line. I do not see that this compares at all with the arduous payment methods for the A22. If Portugal adopted similar methods then I'm sure we would not be having this debate.

You're right sam, but this has been the main debate - you can register or purchase the right equipment as a resident, but the Algarve differs from London in the respect that during the holiday season, a large percentage of vehicles are rented by people just being there for 2-3 weeks.

It would seems for rental cars, the easiest method would be the ability to register your rented vehicle to yourself and your credit card, and when you return the vehicle, pay the bill. If you somehow don't manage to pay, then the debit can be taken from the card you swiped when you first took possession of the vehicle. This would of course require the authorities to develop an on-line process but believe me, that's not difficult.

[sam]

This would of course require the authorities to develop an on-line process but believe me, that's not difficult.

I know its not difficult, but they are not doing it. Why?

[EMM]

One other thing to be aware of as reported on Expats forum, the speed limt through the sensors is 60kph, this has been reduced to 40kph in some areas.

[laserblazer]

One other thing to be aware of as reported on Expats forum, the speed limt through the sensors is 60kph, this has been reduced to 40kph in some areas.

Is this just whilst they are being installed?

[PTBUXTON]

Ok, so there's a Bar code on your hire car right? and this/these sensors read it then right? So when you take your hire car out of car park 4 at the airport, you just stick a piece of insulation tape over the bar code... Simples...click!

If only it were that simple, although I do like the idea Flying fish!

[TomUK]

Blimey! My head hurts! So much confusion and so much mixed information.

We visit central Algarve twice a year. Shuttle transfer to and from Faro (already booked/paid - no increase mentioned yet!). Usually have a few days strolling about, enjoying the beach, seeing what's new etc. During this time we check out the best local car rental prices and do a ten-day rental for the remainder of the holiday. We travel extensively east to west or inland. I actually prefer to use the EN125 as it's less boring than the A22 and there's more to see. However, if we are planning a longer trip to Tavira or Villa Real or a trip the other way to Burgau, Salema, Sagres, etc. we would use the A22 as a time saver. We probably use the A22 about seven or eight times during the ten-day hire, but some of these are short stretches. If the EN125 has roadworks for example we'd divert. If the rental companies charge customers, how will they discern between those who use the A22 a lot and those who use it just a couple of times during the hire? I suppose they could check the electronic gizmo and debit your credit card accordingly. Hopefully, by the time we arrive on 7th May the system will have been smoothed out
Having driven many times on trips to Florida, I have no problems with the principal of tolls, but in the US the system is a doddle. Toll booths for those who have the right change, some for those requiring change to be given and others (unmanned) for drivers with pre-bought passes in their windscreen. Of course many of these require staffing and there is a wage bill (although some have a basket to chuck your money in and are also unmanned). This will never happen in Portugal as they are starting (on the A22 at least) from scratch, so avoiding staffing costs seems to be their biggest consideration.
I will be checking here regularly on the run up to 7th May to see how the system is working (or not working!) and how the hire companies are coping.

[joeysoap]

Hopefully, by the time we arrive on 7th May the system will have been smoothed out

I will be checking here regularly on the run up to 7th May to see how the system is working (or not working!) and how the hire companies are coping.

also 7th may

and also monitoring the state of play on hire cars

[sunman]

hillarious

www.theportugalnews.com/cgi-bin/article.pl?id=1105-4

[Aitch]

hillarious

http://www.theportugalnews.com/cgi-bin/ ... ?id=1105-4

Brilliant

[EMM]

This is the latest from our car hire company on friday.

The authorities want the companies to install the chip in all of their cars ( thousands of them ).

The tollcharge will then be passed on to the hire company and it is their responsibility to collect it from the hirer.

Not surprisingly the companies are resisting this.

Gantries installed on A22 but no signs as yet.

[adrian1972]

Any more news on this? Picked something up from another website that the introduction of the toll will be delayed for a few months. Heres hoping.

Any of you locals confirm this?

[Bruce Wallis]

I spoke to hire car company owner today, and he said that they had given up trying to get guidance from the authorities, who seemed mainly in the dark themselves, and were just going to see what evolved....but anyway, with just over a week to go, they havent even got the cameras installed on the gantries........