Paying Tolls with a New Car

In case you missed it, the California Department of Motor Vehicles announced a new Temporary License Plate Program starting January 1, 2019. The new law (AB 516) states:

“This law requires licensed California dealers, of new and used vehicles, to attach temporary paper license plates on a vehicle at the point of sale if that vehicle does not display license plates previously issued by the DMV. The temporary license plates contain a unique number and expiration date. No vehicle can be driven off the dealership lot without the temporary license plate affixed to it unless it already has issued plates..”

If you recently purchased a new car and would like to drive on The Toll Roads, here are some helpful travel tips:

I bought my car prior to January 1, 2019 and I have paper plates from the car dealership. How can I pay tolls?

In order to drive The Toll Roads, a vehicle without a license plate must have a FasTrak transponder properly mounted to the windshield. It is illegal to drive The Toll Roads in a vehicle that does not have license plates or a FasTrak transponder. CHP patrol our roads to enforce this law.

I bought a car after January 1, 2019 and have a temporary license plate. How can I pay tolls?

Good news! Driving The Toll Roads with new temporary plates is easy. If you have a FasTrak or ExpressAccount account, simply add the temporary plate to your account and drive. If you have a FasTrak transponder, placing it on the windshield will not guarantee that tolls will be charged to your account; adding the temporary plate to your account will avoid the chance of fees or penalties.

If you don’t have an account, you can pay tolls within five days before or after driving The Toll Roads by using the Pay Toll option found at TheTollRoads.com and on our free app for Apple and Android devices.

Does the temporary license plate number have to match the permanent license plate number?

No. Temporary license plates will contain a unique alpha/numeric configuration. When you receive your permanent plates in the mail it is important to add them to your existing FasTrak or ExpressAccount and remove your temporary plate to avoid the chance of fees or penalties.

To see all new laws affecting California drivers click here.

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