Columbus Day weekend will mark the end of a 17 year toll-free ride on the western section of the Massachusetts Turnpike.
Tolls will be restored on Tuesday between Exit 1 in West Stockbridge and Exit 6 in Springfield. The legislature mandated the reinstatement of the tolls as part of a $500 million transportation finance bill approved in July. Drivers will pay the same tolls that were in effect in 1996 when former Republican Governor William Weld had the tolls removed. Massachusetts Highway Administrator Frank DePaola said the tolls will bring in about $12 million a year that will put toward maintenance and repairs.
In the run up to the return of the tolls, hundreds of motorists have signed up for the E-Z Pass program to pay the tolls electronically.
