Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission

The Ohio Turnpike will be celebrating its 70th anniversary on Oct. 1, 2025. Each month, significant aspects of the toll road's history are being highlighted. Toll operations was selected for March. The Ohio Turnpike’s new toll collection system, which launched about a year ago, features open road tolling with E-ZPass. It is the sixth toll system implemented since 1955. Over the years, toll collectors have been integral to the Ohio Turnpike’s success working on the frontlines of the toll road, assisting drivers with toll payments, and providing information about hotels, local attractions, and other destinations. Toll collectors, who contribute to the safety and security of the toll road, have ensured a smooth and efficient travel experience for customers over the past seven decades. PHOTO: Ohio Turnpike staff pose with various toll collector uniforms worn throughout the years. Pictured (left to right): Valerie Reed, eastern district toll supervisor; Dawn Shockey, deputy director of toll operations; Maria Hill, secretary; Laurie Davis, director of toll operations; Patience Colon, central district toll supervisor; and Linda Parker, department head secretary.

If you receive a text message claiming you have a toll payment due, please be aware that this is likely part of an ongoing, nationwide texting scam. The Ohio Turnpike does NOT send text messages requesting payment for unpaid tolls. The Ohio Turnpike will send up to three invoices by U.S. Mail to collect unpaid tolls. However, if you receive a text message from Reliant Capital Solutions, LLC – a collection agency working for the Ohio Attorney General’s Office – concerning an account in collections more than 90 days past due, please contact Reliant Capital Solutions directly by calling 866.738.3182 prior to making any payment.

“New vehicle technology and innovations – such as forward collision warning, adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring, lane departure warnings, 360-degree cameras, and more – on display at the auto show are safety enhancements. They are not a replacement for safe, attentive, and responsible driving habits,” said Chris Matta, chief engineer/deputy executive director for the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission, in remarks at the Cleveland Auto Show on Feb. 21, 2025. “Unsafe driving behaviors cause more than 90 percent of fatal crashes each year nationwide.”

Chris Matta (right), chief engineer/deputy executive director for the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission, and Lt. Phil Robinson (left) with the Ohio State Highway Patrol, announce traffic safety initiatives at the Cleveland Auto Show on Feb. 21, 2025. Matta urged all motorists – including professional truck drivers – to keep roadway safety at the forefront and be self-aware of unsafe driving behaviors, such as speeding; distracted, impaired, aggressive, and drowsy driving; following too closely; not wearing a seat belt; failing to obey traffic signs and signals; and driving an unsafe vehicle.

February is Black History Month. This year’s theme is Black Americans and Labor, which spotlights the various and profound ways that hard work intersects with the experiences of Black people in America. Hard work is also the foundation of the Ohio Turnpike, which is also celebrating its monumental 70th Anniversary this year.

While searching through the archives to commemorate the Ohio Turnpike’s 70th Anniversary (1955-2025) this year, we discovered a 70-year-old telegram from the White House as a fitting tribute to Presidents Day. On Sept. 29, 1955 – two days prior to the opening of the entire 241-mile toll road – President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s press secretary sent a telegram to Ohio’s Governor stating: “On behalf of the President, I extend through you to the people of Ohio his warm congratulations on the opening of the Ohio Turnpike. I know he feels that in its construction standards, its engineering advances, its contribution to safety, and quickness of travel and transport, the turnpike reflects the enterprise and progressive spirit of a great state. The President, I also know, feels sure that Ohio’s achievement will accelerate throughout the country … the building of modern highways fitted to the needs of the nation and designed to promote its safety and prosperity in an expanding economy.”

Ohio has just won a significant but little-known honor. The mobile app Trucker Path asked their audience of professional drivers to rate the best 100 places to stop out of the 9,000 truck stops and 10,000 additional fueling locations. The best of the best according to more than 1 million semi drivers is the Tiffin River Service Plaza on the eastbound lane of the Ohio Turnpike in West Unity.