Visitor Toll Pass - Activation - Alamo

[SandLake]

I'm liking this new scheme even though it is only temporary at the minute.
I'm still a bit unclear after reading all the Visitor Toll Pass faq's about 'activation'. Have they installed something as you leave the car hire company parking area or at the exit to the garage?
Whatever it is I would like to see it so that I can make sure I drive through it's line of sight.


It's not far from leaving the airport to reaching the westbound toll on the Beachline, I assume the activation is near enough instantaneous so that will be picked up OK?


TIA

[mick]

It's activated automatically as you're leaving the garage - no need to do anything. When you get to a Wifi location you will have received an email with your account details. We logged on as soon as we reached the villa and the three tolls on the 417 were already logged. Some were less than when paying cash.

We did go onto our account and enter the car tag number but the tolls locations and times were all accurate.

Mick

[ManCity]

If you go to CFXway's main web site and look at the agendas/minutes for each of their Board meetings, you will see the presentation material the Board looked at when reviewing progress on the scheme. One of the slides has a photo of the equipment at the MCO garage exit. It is difficult to see how you can avoid it.

Since the scheme is still officially in the 'pilot' phase, they will be using it to check everything is working ok, and eliminate any bugs, before making it permanent. However, in the unlikely event the activation didn't work automatically, they do give you instructions and contact details so you can correct the problem.

[coinneach]

We hooked the card to the rear view mirror (barcode facing out) before leaving the car park and that was it. Checked the VTP website later and all connected showing tolls we've gone through.

[SandLake]

I may be being pedantic but what causes it to activate automatically as you're leaving the garage?

[mick]

Originally Posted by SandLake

I may be being pedantic but what causes it to activate automatically as you're leaving the garage?

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Sadly I'm not an expert on how bar codes are read but there must be some technological gadget that can read the bar code as you pass under or alongside it. Just as it does when it knows you've gone through a toll plaza.

Just like paying contactless with a credit card I guess but trust me it works. So far I've done the 417 run and two through the toll on Osceola Parkway near the Loop.

My on-line account shows the passages exactly to the day and time.

Mick

PS
Just re-read your first post. Have you not seen in their detailed FAQs that they give you a card to hang on your rear view mirror. This is what is read by the clever stuff at the garage and at the tolls.

Nothing more to offer I'm afraid

Try this

visitortollpass/Faq

[PPM]

Originally Posted by SandLake

I may be being pedantic but what causes it to activate automatically as you're leaving the garage?

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There’s a little shed with a man in it...

Seriously there’s sensors on the narrow exit roads from the garage so the car can’t miss them. Once passed there the system associates the tag and numberplate of the car..
The card isn't really activated, it’s the system.
As the car passes a toll plaza the system reads the tag and the numberplate. If there was no tag the toll company would automatically chart the car rental company. As there is a tag it overrides the numberplate system and charges your account directly. This way you don’t get double charged for the toll.

Hope this helps.

[bighal]

Originally Posted by SandLake

I may be being pedantic but what causes it to activate automatically as you're leaving the garage?

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The sensors at the exits are set up to detect the tags in the same way as they do on the tolls. This is why you need to have them hanging from your mirror and why can only pick them up at MCO as the other airports are not configured to detect the pass.

[mick]

Originally Posted by PPM

There’s a little shed with a man in it...

Seriously there’s sensors on the narrow exit roads from the garage so the car can’t miss them. Once passed there the system associates the tag and numberplate of the car..
The card isn't really activated, it’s the system.
As the car passes a toll plaza the system reads the tag and the numberplate. If there was no tag the toll company would automatically chart the car rental company. As there is a tag it overrides the numberplate system and charges your account directly. This way you don’t get double charged for the toll.

Hope this helps.

See more...

PPM

From memory I think that the man in the shed was only in the "10 items or fewer" check out line. We were already on auto-pilot out of garage B on to the 417 south without undue delay. A couple of VTP staff loitering on level 1 near the car hire desks with some teccy stuff with which they matched my CC with the tag. Less than 5 minutes.

Out of interest there were no saloon cars in the full size row in garage B just some vans. I complained to the Alamo guy who told me to pick an SUV from another row. Driving around in a Kia Sportage now. No real bells and whistles but it gets us from A to B.

One minor point of interest.

When you first log on to your VTP a/c you may find another car tag number in there. I just changed the number to mine and the transactions are all mine. I guess that they always just recycle the tags but leave the earlier reg number in.

Anyway enough of this. Forecast to be 82F today so back to the pool deck.

Mick

[JAL]

The lady at the visitor toll pass booth at MCO told me they have a camera at the exit of each car rental place. When you pass through it, your toll pass is activated and your car reg number is read so that it will override any rental toll pass system on the car. Worked perfectly for me in October. I went through over 30 tolls and the total cost was around $26. Hope they keep the system going for next year.