Central Florida toll roads to potentially remain free for weeks

ORLANDO, Fla. — Although signs of Hurricane Ian have vanished from all but the most heavily impacted parts of Central Florida, the area’s toll roads continue to remain free to travel on, with no immediate end in sight.

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Gov. Ron DeSantis cut off the tolls in the Tampa region as part of his September 23 executive order and added the inland highways as of 5 p.m. on September 27 as Ian’s track and effects became clearer.

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Two weeks later, the Central Florida Expressway Authority reports it’s losing $1.6 million per day in uncollected tolls, placing a $22 million dent – and counting – into its yearly budget.

As of Tuesday, FDOT was unable to provide any clues about when collections might resume. Expressway Authority leaders said they also had no idea.

“We have not received any word yet,” spokesman Brian Hutchings said, assuring that toll collectors were on paid leave in the meantime. “We’ve been checking the governor’s website… religiously for updates.”

In its yearly budget filings, the Authority projected it would collect approximately $537 million in tolls and fees during the 2022-2023 fiscal year, meaning Ian has impacted approximately 4% of its expected collections so far.

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The money is spent in maintenance and repaving projects, as well as planning and building new expressways across the Authority’s five-county region. Officials said they had not yet begun discussing which projects, if any, could be delayed because of the loss.

“Once they are the toll suspensions lifted, and we really have a good handle of the dollar amount that we’re looking at, then we’re going to have those conversations,” Hutchings said, adding that the Authority’s priority was on its fellow Floridians and the multi-billion-dollar organization was well prepared to weather the hit.

Authority board member and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said the governor would likely rescind that part of his order as the rest of the state continued its recovery.

The only definitive date known so far is the legally required end of the emergency order. State law mandates a 60-day expiration date. Unless DeSantis acts to end the order early or extend it, tolls would resume being collected by November 22.

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That would cost the Authority approximately $96 million, a far more painful sum. However, officials see a bright side to the situation.

“I’ve noticed that there is considerable [sic] more folks using [the roads] than then when the tolls are not suspended,” Hutchings said. “We think it’s a great opportunity for them to experience our roads, and hopefully when the tolls are lifted, they’ll continue to drive.”

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