‘Dynamic tolling’ – a fluctuating, real-time pricing model – begins for Central 70 express lane Monday

DENVER — Starting Monday, drivers who use the Central 70 express lane through Denver and Aurora will see a change in the cost of their commute.

CDOT is debuting its new real-time pricing model, called “dynamic tolling,” on the 10-mile stretch of road between Interstate 25 and Chambers Road. In the real-time pricing model, the toll rate fluctuates based on current traffic conditions with the goal of reducing traffic congestion.

For the Central 70 express lane, the rate will ebb and flow between $1.50 and $5.50, depending on conditions. The rate can change as often as every five to 15 minutes, CDOT says, and overhead signs will continue to display the current rate.

The Central 70 express lane will become the first in Colorado to use the new pricing model, but the state’s Transportation Investment Office has plans to implement the technology on all of Colorado’s express lanes by next year.

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CDOT started collecting tolls on the Central 70 express lanes last summer. Currently, pricing on the Central 70 express lane – and many across the state – follows a time-of-day model in which a flat rate is applied to a window of time, regardless of traffic flow. From the rush-hour window of 6 a.m. to 8:59 a.m., for example, the toll rate is $4.50. In the lower-demand period of 7 p.m. to 5:59 a.m., the rate is $1.50.

Those rates are based on historical data and anticipated traffic flow.

“The problem with that is that those are averages and they're not tied to actual conditions day-to-day [and] what's going on right now,” Tim Hoover, the deputy director of communications for CDOT, told Denver7.

In the real-time model, several methods of traffic monitoring – primarily sensors placed along the roadway – feed an algorithm that automatically sets the toll rate. But the cost of your commute won’t be solely at the mercy of a computer.

“We have people who monitor in real time the express lanes and the corridors to just see what's going on,” Hoover said. “So we know when there are accidents. We know when there are diversions."

That team will have the power to turn off tolling and other so-called safety enforcement, which monitors express lanes for proper entry and exit, in the event of an accident to help drivers get around the accident and keep traffic moving, Hoover said.

Central 70’s express lanes will still be free to use for motorcyclists, commercial transit vehicles and those with three or more passengers and a switchable HOV transponder, according to CDOT.