Sometimes, the urge to “gotta go fast” on a highway costs money, potentially a lot of money, depending on how often one commutes on said road. That said, Reddit user Tony310s found the toll to take the express lane on SR-91 in Southern California quite outrageous. In his post on r/mildlyinfuriating, he shared a photo of the County Line cost of $24.30. “I wish I was making this up!” he exclaimed.
To clarify, there is no required toll to drive down SR-91; however, people do have to pay if they want to take the optional express lane and avoid traffic. As Tony explains in his post, you’re paying to skip “what can easily be a 40-minute traffic jam” over an 8-mile stretch. How much 40 minutes of waiting in traffic is worth to someone will differ, but Tony believes it’s worth the $24.30 price.
Redditors Agreed That Sometimes An Extra Fee Is Worth to Avoid Traffic
“Honestly, sometimes it’s worth every penny just to keep moving. SoCal traffic really has us out here paying to drive faster,” he remarked, adding that he used the express lane every weekday. While plenty of people agree that $24.30 is a wild cost, just as many agree that they’d rather pay than wait. “40 minutes is a lot,” wrote a Redditor. “I prefer this over having a $5 toll lane that’s also backed up.”
“Ever been to an amusement park and they will let you skip the line if you pay extra? Same thing, just less amusing,” ironically added another commenter. What some people might not realize is that some officials believed the $24.30 is not enough and should be even more expensive, according to the Riverside County Transportation Commission.
Another thing to add is that the price can change depending on the time of day and traffic congestion, with $24.30 being the typical peak cost. As some other Redditors point out, such express lane tolls can cost even more elsewhere, depending on the state. Commenter Foolserrand376 jokes that Tony’s toll is “pocket change” compared to the $46.50 cost they’ve seen.
In the end, people can still travel through plenty of the highways for free, but whether they’re willing to pay a solid meal’s worth of money to avoid traffic is another thing entirely.
