The modernization of the toll system in the City has an unexpected and favorable consequence for users. For the first time, motorists who were unable to use a highway after having paid for the pass will be granted a fee. they will return the moneydirectly to your account.
It will be for 4,166 vehicles that on Sunday they passed through the Illia highway towards Provincia, between 9.20 and 13.40. What happened? As they advanced, they found that Cantilo Avenue was impassable due to a broken pipe, so they were diverted.
It all started on Sunday morning, when an AySA water main broke, in Cantilo near Parque Norte. This forced the traffic going towards General Paz to be cut off and the vehicles to be taken through the Sarmiento descent.
The issue is that the 4,166 vehicles had already passed through the collection arch with Telepase, therefore they had been debited the cost of the toll: $903.33 if they passed before the start of rush hour (on Sundays it is from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. hand Province) or $ 1,277.44 for those who circulated during the time slot with the highest demand. As of a year ago, toll booths were eliminated and all users must pay with Telepase: 93% of motorists who use Buenos Aires highways already have it.
Since those paying drivers were unable to use the entire section on Sunday, the company AUSAconcessionaire of the Buenos Aires highway network, decided to return the money to users.
People should not do no paperwork. Anyone who has their Telepase linked to a credit or debit card will see the bonus directly charged there. Meanwhile, if you pay through the Mercado Pago app, you will see the amount credited to your account. To follow the refund you can go to telepase.com.ar/login, or enter this link.
The operation in Cantilo to regulate traffic, following the breakage of an AySA pipeline near Parque Norte.
Although traffic had already been partially organized on Sunday, the situation remains complex on Cantilo, because the repair of the damage will take “at least one more week,” they told AUSA. These days, Cantilo has two left lanes enabled, but the right lanes and the shoulder are closed. The current detours are:
- Closure of Paseo del Bajo in the North direction at the height of Retiro.
- Traffic (light and heavy) coming from the Costanera may enter Parque Norte.
This reimbursement sets a good precedent for residents and highway users, because it would allow future claims in similar cases. Until now, tolls had never been returned, largely because With the manual system it was unfeasible to do so. The automation and digitalization of collection allows users to be identified.
The only times in which tolls were not collected was when lines that were too long formed at the booths and, by honking horns, the operators had to raise the barriers to clear the traffic.
Another precedent was during the peak of the Covid quarantine, when tolls were not collected to encourage people to travel in their cars and not use public transportation, with a greater risk of contagion.
The works to repair the broken pipe that forced the Cantilo to close on Sunday.
The automatic toll system without booths, known as “Free Flow” began to be used in the City at the entrance of Sarmiento and Salguero, towards General Paz, in 2018, also on the Illia highway. Later it was also applied in Paseo del Bajo, inaugurated in 2019, although this road is only used by buses and trucks. Last year the rest of the Illia was completed, and this year the booths at the Parque Avellaneda tolls were removed.
The metal gantry serves as a support for a camera system that detects both the Telepase wafer and the vehicle license plate, and thus identifies it to debit the toll payment.
Those who do not have the Telepase and travel on the highway will have 30 days to pay – double the rate – through the official AUSA website (https://cobranzas.ausa.com.ar/). Once that period has passed, if the system detects that the payment was not made, then a fine must be paid for “toll evasion”, which today is $70,708.50.
