I’m Not The Only One Who Hates When Drivers on the Maine Turnpike Do This

One of my biggest pet peeves is drivers who don't pay attention to the signs on the road. They're there for a reason, but drivers just tend to ignore them and do the exact opposite of what the sign instructs.

Speed limit signs are probably the signs that get ignored the most in Maine, but there's another that gets ignored on the Maine Turnpike that needs to be paid attention to.

Open Road Tolling

The Maine Turnpike opened its first open road tolling plaza, in New Gloucester, on April 1, 2013. Open road tolling allows drivers to bypass toll booths that slow drivers down to 10 mph to electronically pay the toll with EZ-Pass.  With open road tolling, you don't have to slow down at all. Keep going 70 or 65 mph, depending on the toll location, and your toll is paid without needing to stop or slow down. But that's the problem.

Maintain Highway Speed

Open road tolling only works if everyone knows what to do. Many drivers approach the open road tolling plaza and slow down, despite many signs reminding drivers "DO NOT STOP."

The Maine Turnpike posted the above photo to remind people how it works. After over 10 years of open road tolling on the Turnpike, people still slow down which is dangerous. I'm not the only one who thinks so.

READ MORE: Maine Turnpike Rest Areas Closed For The Winter? – It Used to Happen

Frustration in the Comments

The comments left on the Maine Turnpike's Facebook post echo my frustration:

Those of us who know not to stop are frustrated to no end at those who don't read the signs. Please don't be one of those people. Maintain highway speeds when going through the open road toll.