THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, June 2, 1995 TAG: 9506020523
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KERRY DOUGHERTY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines
Giddy commuters cruised through unmanned toll chutes Thursday morning, leaning on their horns and waving ``V'' for victory as they did.
Jaguars and Jeeps, Saabs and Subarus, Mercedes Benzes and Mack trucks. The exhilaration of the drivers was infectious as they saluted the inaugural rush hour without tolls.
But in the center of the jubilant scene, the grimy green and chrome toll booths stood like silent sentinels with their little black ``Toll Collector on Duty'' signs still incongruously in place. It will be two more weeks before all traces of the 14 toll booths are gone.
It was hard to tell if commuters were more excited about the free ride or that the expected massive traffic jams never materialized. State police estimated the average driver was whizzing through the toll plaza at about 55 mph - in what is now a work zone with a speed limit of 40.
Several tractor trailers slammed into the overhead ``Exact Change'' signs, causing a spray of sparks each time, but no accidents. In the past, trucks were funneled through the cash and commuter-tickets lanes with better overhead clearance.
``I'm just waiting for one of these cars to run into a toll booth at 60 miles an hour,'' muttered a Department of Transportation worker watching the scene.
State police reported no accidents as of Thursday afternoon but predicted that will change with the weekend traffic.
``Mark my words, there are going to be a lot of wrecks,'' said Senior State Trooper W.G. Raborg.
Another trooper, Thomas T. Jasinowski, earned the distinction of issuing the last citation for failure to pay a toll. He nailed a 25-year-old Norfolk woman at 9:50 p.m. Wednesday near the Witchduck Road exit. If convicted, she could pay $65 instead of 10 cents.
On Thursday, each commuter cheered the toll-less morning in his own way. The driver of a Terminix truck with a steroidal insect bolted to its roof blew his horn and shook a fist from the window as he passed the toll booths. A Krispy Kreme step van driver couldn't resist tooting his horn as he drove through the plaza without tossing a quarter. And the driver of a black Ford Escort wagon tapped out a tattoo on his horn and gunned his engine as he passed the shrouded machines.
Children on board the yellow Gateway Church and Christian School bus knelt on the seats, their faces pressed to the windows. They waved and yelled to workers as they passed yellow cones, blinking lights, orange barrels, state police cars and oversized ``NO TOLL'' signs that heralded the end of toll-taking.
But by late morning the citizen celebration gave way to political theater as a jacketless Gov. George F. Allen arrived and a host of local politicians elbowed one another for the chance to be photographed shoulder-to-shoulder with the governor by a neon NO TOLLS sign.
``It's a great morning,'' Allen crowed as he squinted into the sun. ``It's great not to have to be fumbling around for nickels, dimes and quarters.''
A small crowd of local dignitaries - sporting blaze orange and yellow DOT mesh vests - sat on metal chairs in one lane of the freeway to hear Allen speak. After giving a capsule history of the toll road, Allen delivered a backhanded compliment to Democratic legislators who belatedly endorsed the idea of lifting the tolls.
``We always like converts,'' Allen quipped before ceremoniously removing the last remaining ``STOP Pay Toll'' sign.
Earlier in the morning, transportation workers had polished that sign, swept the concrete barrier it rested on and even loosened its lone screw - ensuring a smooth removal when the governor attacked it with a shiny socket wrench.
Allen yanked the sign down with a flourish and slammed it into the bed of an orange pickup parked, conveniently, a few feet away.
After getting as much political mileage as possible out of the moment, the officials left.
The commuters continued their victory ride. They were asked no quarter. They gave none. MEMO: Staff writer Mac Daniel contributed to this story.
ILLUSTRATION: Color staff photo by Bill Tiernan
Traffic flows through the toll plaza Thursday morning without no
backups.
KEYWORDS: VIRGINIA BEACH-NORFOLK EXPRESSWAY TOLL by CNB