Section 10 Turnpike tolls; metropolitan highway system tolls
Section 10. (a) The authority is hereby authorized to charge and collect and from time to time fix and revise tolls for transit over the turnpike and the different parts or sections thereof, subject to such classifications of vehicles and manners of collection as the authority determines desirable and subject to provisions of clause (i) of section four. Such tolls shall be so fixed and adjusted as to provide, at a minimum, a fund sufficient with other revenues, if any, to pay (a) costs incurred in furtherance of this chapter related to the turnpike including, but not limited to, the cost of owning, maintaining, repairing, reconstructing, improving, rehabilitating, policing, using, administering, controlling and operating the turnpike; and (b) the principal of, redemption premium, if any, and the interest on notes or bonds relating to the turnpike as the same shall become due and payable and to create and maintain reserves established for any of the authority’s corporate purposes. Such tolls shall not be subject to supervision, regulation, approval or disapproval by any department, division, commission, board, bureau or agency of the commonwealth or any political subdivision thereof. The authority shall maintain the confidentiality of all information including, but not limited to, photographs or other recorded images and credit and account data, relative to account holders who participate in its electronic toll collection system. Such information shall not be a public record and shall be used for enforcement purposes only with respect to toll collection regulations. An account holder may, upon written request to the authority, have access to all information pertaining solely to the account holder. For each violation of applicable authority regulations related to electronic toll collection, a violation notice shall be sent to the registered owner of the vehicle in violation. The notice shall include the registration number of the vehicle, the state of issuance of such registration and the date, time and place of the violation. The notice may be based in whole or in part upon inspection of any photographic or other recorded image of a vehicle and the written certification by a state police officer or other person employed by or under contract with the authority or its electronic toll collection system contractor that it is so based shall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained therein and shall be admissible in any administrative or judicial proceeding to adjudicate the liability for such violation.
(b) The authority is hereby authorized to charge and collect and from time to time fix and revise tolls for transit over or through the metropolitan highway system or any part thereof subject to such classifications of vehicles and manners of collection as the authority determines desirable and subject to provisions of clause (j) of section four. Such tolls shall be so fixed and adjusted as to provide, at a minimum, a fund sufficient with other revenues, if any, to pay (a) costs incurred in furtherance of this chapter related to the metropolitan highway system including, but not limited to, the cost of owning, constructing, maintaining, repairing, reconstructing, improving, rehabilitating, policing, using, administering, controlling and operating the metropolitan highway system; and (b) the principal of, redemption premium, if any, and the interest on notes or bonds relating to the metropolitan highway system as the same shall become due and payable and to create and maintain reserves established for any of the authority’s corporate purposes; provided, however, that the authority shall not charge or collect a toll for transit through the Callahan tunnel, the Sumner tunnel or the Ted Williams tunnel by official vehicles of the commonwealth or any municipality, political subdivision or instrumentality thereof, including police, fire and ambulance vehicles, while such vehicles are on official business. The authority shall maintain the confidentiality of all information including, but not limited to, photographs or other recorded images and credit and account data, relative to account holders who participate in its electronic toll collection system. Such information shall not be a public record and shall be used for enforcement purposes only with respect to toll collection regulations. An account holder may, upon written request to the authority, have access to all information pertaining solely to the account holder. For each violation of applicable authority regulations related to electronic toll collection, a violation notice shall be sent to the registered owner of the vehicle in violation. The notice shall include the registration number of the vehicle, the state of issuance of such registration and the date, time and place of the violation. The notice may be based in whole or in part upon inspection of any photographic or other recorded image of a vehicle and the written certification by a state police officer or other person employed by or under contract with the authority or its electronic toll collection system contractor that it is so based shall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained therein and shall be admissible in any administrative or judicial proceeding to adjudicate the liability for such violation.