According to the PA, skyrocketing E-ZPass usage following the agency's March 25th toll increase made the move possible. The Port Authority told the Bergen Record that on the Friday after the toll schedule change, 80% of all drivers using the Palisades Parkway plaza paid electronically between 6am-9am, when drivers with E-ZPass receive $1 peak-hour discount. 70% of all payments at that plaza are made with E-ZPass.

Accustoming drivers to unmanned plazas is an important step towards replacing traditional toll booths with overhead gantries that read E-ZPass transponders at normal highway speeds. But overnight Palisades drivers will still be required to slow down to the day-time limit of 5 mph for at least three more years. A Port Authority spokesman said that removing the cash booths and building low- to high-speed merging lanes are the central challenges facing non-stop toll project designers. Commuters are likely to be clamoring for the upgrade sooner as more and more begin using E-ZPass.

At a meeting earlier this month, the Port Authority Board approved the appointment of Neil Levin, a former investment banker and New York insurance commissioner, as Port Authority executive director.

The Board also approved the first of $1 billion worth of PATH system capital improvements funded by the recent toll and fare increase. The PA will buy 245 new PATH cars, rehab another 95 cars and install a new state-of-the-art subway signal system. With 260,000 average weekday riders, up 24% since 1996, PATH is close to capacity. Better signals and more cars will permit faster rush-hour headways and more trains.