Newsday (Suffolk Edition) from Melville, New York • 25

A25 agSMi (Not-Always-So-)E-Z Pass Makes Way to Triborough Nnndiy rile Pboco Michael Aril Lane workers help sort out toll plaza contusion and delays after E-Z Pass went into effect at Throgs Neck Bridge in the spring By Nora McCarthy STAFF WRITER Vfl'ANHATTAN IS an island" begins the ImH trailer for Sylvester movie JLT JL which opens in the fall day its population grows to over three million and every evening three quarters of them leave the city If you want to get off the island you can go over the water or under it" On Wednesday commuters going over the water are invited to try out E-Z Pass on the Triborough Bridge It could almost be the plot to without the action In fact commuters are afraid that E-Z Pass which begins on the Triborough on Wednesday will cause just the opposite of action: the antsy boredom of sitting in traffic not to mention fears of many glitches that have plagued other E-Z Pass locales In hopes of helping commuters Blide through this E-Z Pass installation there will be no Pass lanes on the Triborough Bridge during the transition period E-Z Pass customers will be able to use their tags in the automatic coin machine lanes that also accept tokens At least three of these lanes will be open for E-Z Pass in each direction at the Manhattan and Bronx plazas of the bridge As more customers switch to the system some lanes will be declared Pass Only" but MTA has not decided when to do this This type lane can process 900 vehicles an hour compared to an average of 600 vehicles an hour for the existing automatic coin machine lanes or 300 per hour for staffed full-service lanes On the Whitestone and Heniy Hudson bridges where lanes were not initially restricted to E-Z Pass only the transition to E-Z Pass was remarkably smooth said Josh Taylor an Metropolitan Transit Authority spokesman Those bridges have not switched to E-Z-Pass-only lanes yet however so it is unclear whether more problems will crop up Commuters have been aggravated that traffic slows down at tolls because it is harder for drivers to figure out which lane to get in With three different signs to read and a more complex lane configuration to navigate drivers often end up switching lanes at the last minute Although the booths themselves are clearly marked the lanes that lead to the booths often curve and the lanes are not painted with stripes or some other distinguishing mark that would help drivers know which lane leads where Mass confusion just before the tolls has actually slowed down traffic rather than speeding it up months ago think the best thing since sliced bread" he said His only aggravation stems from drivers who scoot into the open E-Z Pass lanes get two feet from the toll and then edge into the front of a long line of cash payers Finding the correct lane has taken some getting used to and there have been some glitches some E-Z passes have been stolen and a few cars have windshields that prevent E-Z Pass from scanning through them but the MTA has been pleased with the system Commuters have had the hardest time adjusting to E-Z Pass on the Throgs Neck Bridge because traffic from two highways converges there forcing the MTA to place the E-Z Pass lanes in the middle but other routes have been less troublesome Taylor said At the Triborough Bridge toll plazas E-Z Pass lanes will be clumped together to avoid confusion Once the Triborough is up and running seven bridges and tunnels will be equipped with the system All MTA bridges and tunnels will have been outiflted when the Qucens-Midtown Tunnel and Brooklyn-Buttery Tunnel are brought up to date this fall have been some Taylor said been a learning process and drivers are also learning how to make the best use of E-Z although MTA hopes this will change once drivers have gotten accustomed to the new lanes Warren Culp of New Hyde Park said E-Z Pass is confusing to him because hard to read all the signs find the right lane and get in it by the time he reaches the toll On his way to Washington DC last weekend Culp had the embarrassing and exasperating problem of getting into a seemingly short line only to realize that the lanes curved and he was in a token-only lane with cash in his hand Despite the complaints and system glitches that have been plaguing MTA E-Z Pass sales have exceeded expectations Taylor said About 230000 E-Z Pass tags have been sold since the system began 10 months ago Planners had anticipated that only 187000 would be sold after three years E-Z Pass costs the same amount as tokens With many regular commuters signing on traffic at tolls should be eased once E-Z pass becomes routine for daily drivers But even now Paul Kampa of Northport who commutes daily to Manhattan had almost nothing but praise for E-Z Pass Gone are the days of rooting for change in pockets or realizing your roll of tokens is back home on the kitchen table he said Kampa bought an E-Z Pass tag about three Lane Grand Central ong Island Pkwy Northern Sunken Expwy State Meadow 9 Plow Pfcwy- Sunrise Raawav '-V-'-'-7 Tv -Robert Moses'' Rodjmw x-y -o Cm i Meadowbrook Wantagh Ocean Parkway Pkwy Pkwy Route 25A One lane closed either direction from Bread A Cheese Hollow Road to Meridian Avenue 9 a to 3:30 pm Meadowbrook State Parkway Movmg operation one lane either direction from Ocean Parkway to Route 27 9 a to 4 pm Moving operation one lane either direction from Route 27 to Southern State Parkway 10 am to 3 pm Loop Parkway One lane moving operation either direction from Lido Parkway to Meadowbrook State Parkway 10 am to 2 pm Northers State Parkway One lane closed Monday to Tnursday easi-bound Exit 37 to 37 A westbound from Exit 38 to 37 10 pm to 5 a Friday night to Sanday morning 10 to 8 am easfcCund from Exit 37 to 37A and westbound from Exit 38 to 37 Queens Triborough Bridge One Ians closed on the ramp Monday to Friday from 830 to 5 a One lane closed each auction Mends to Frda from 9 30 a to 2 30 Ore ane osed around-the-clock cr the Bronx-War ha ttar ramp Long Island Expressway-North Servico Road One lane closed westbound between Route 231 (Exit 51) and Half Hollow Road West 9 am to 5 pm Routs 27 (Sunrise Highway) One lane closed in each direction from Connet-quot Avenue to Pond Road eastbound 7 am to 3 pm Westbound 9 am to 3 pm One lane closed in each direction from Pond Road to Veteran's Highway eastbound dawn to 4 pm westbound 9 am to dusk Lanes closed from Brentwood Road to Connetquot Road westbound right lane 9 am to 5 pm One lane closed in either direction intermittently as a moving closure from Meadow-brook State Parkway to Wantagh State Parkway eastbound and westbound 7 am to 3 pm Route 25 (Jericho Turnpike) Possible one lane closed between Route 25A and Rte 35 eastbound 7 am to 3 pm westbound 9 am to 4 pm One lane closed east and west between Route 112 and County Road 21 9 am to 4 pm I in Route 106107 Two lanes closed in each direction Sunday to Thursday from Northern State Parkway to Old Country Road 10:30 pm to 6 a Bellmore Avenue Right lane closed intermittently each direction Merrick Avenue to Grand Avenue 9 am to 3 pm Jerusalem Avenue Right lane closed in each direction intermittently from Meadowbrook Road to Florence Avenue 9 am to 3:30 pm Nassau Expressway One lane closed in each direction from Broadway to Atlantic Beach Bridge 7 am to 4 pm.