Unruly motorists have pushed the operators of the Edward Seaga Highway (or T3 leg of Highway 2000) to develop a blacklist system that flags vehicles linked to toll road violations and restrict them from accessing the motorway.

According to the Jamaica North South Highway Company Limited (JNSHCL), developer and operator of the 66.13-kilometre road which has six toll plazas and one local head office operating on a 24/7 basis, the violations include tailgating through the barrier, forcing the barrier, and stealing or swapping toll cards to avoid payment. Verbal abuse or violent threats against staff will also result in blacklisting. Blacklisted vehicles are prohibited from entering the highway and once identified will be turned away.

According to the operators, those responsible will bear full legal responsibility under applicable law for any resulting harm, disruption or consequences to the highway and the travelling public.

Trudy-Ann Williams, deputy commercial and compliance manager for the JNSHCL, told the
Jamaica Observer that a pilot of the feature was conducted last month and full roll-out is slated for the end of this month.

“We had security on the ground, personnel from the Jamaica Constabulary who were willing to assist us once we were able to identify these motorists, to escort them from the toll lane
— if it is that they became boisterous
— or just simply to provide further information to them about the reason they were placed on the blacklist,” Williams told the Observer.

She said the operators have developed a working list based on past violations committed by operators of private and public passenger vehicles.

“The numbers fluctuate. Right now I think we have over 50 licence plates; it’s not an extensive list and the list is updated as time goes by, as we do more research, so the list will change if a motorist comes forward and clears themselves; they will be removed and the list updated,” she told the Observer.

Williams said an individual who, for example, was blacklisted because they did not pay the toll can clear themselves by coming forward to pay the relevant sum.

Explaining how the debarring feature works, Williams said, “Once a motorist who is on the blacklist approaches the toll lane, their licence plate will be detected by our new QR code system and an alert will go off, meaning an alarm, and they will be barred and not allowed to enter the highway. Once they are discovered we will alert the motorist that they are on the blacklist and that they should remove themselves from the toll lane,” Williams said.

“There is a flashing light, there is an alarm and the barrier will not open,” she said, adding that motorists who wish to be clear about their status can contact JNSHCL through its general office or customer service lines (1-876-803-5075 or 1-888-429-5674), respectively.

“We also will make a list available through our website where they can search to confirm whether or not they are on the blacklist. However, their full details will not be available on the website because we do not want to disclose sensitive details to just about anyone who has access, so they will still have to call to clarify the reason they are blacklisted,” Williams outlined.

She also emphasised that individuals who are involved in altercations with toll booth staff are only blacklisted after thorough investigations.

“There are different reasons why motorists might become blacklisted; it might not only be for toll evasion, even through toll evasion is the number one reason. If we have persons who have violated or abused the toll in any way, including being overly rude or violent toward our staff, they can also be placed on the blacklist. There are not a lot of those persons; however, we would just like persons to bear in mind that we are non-tolerant of our staff members being abused in any way,” she pointed out.

“If it is that someone thinks it was unfair of us to have blacklisted them for that reason, we would have ensured that we did our due diligence before adding them to that list, which includes gathering relevant evidence… for any of those violations. We have evidence, and that is how we determine if the vehicle will be blacklisted. We are not taking it lightly or trying to just build a list on a whim; it is all evidence-based,” Williams said.

In the meantime, she said in addition to the blacklist feature, the JNSHCL is introducing a new way to access the toll road via the QR code or cardless system, effectively phasing out the use of toll cards.

“Persons will be able to access the toll road without taking a toll card and, instead, will use their cellphone to scan a QR code. The cellphone, if it has data or even if it doesn’t have data, we will provide free Wi-Fi at our toll plazas; they can connect or use their data, scan the QR code app or feature on their phone, and that will generate a journey code. Once that information is captured, then they are allowed access to the motorway and then when they get to the exit the information, in most cases, will automatically populate. If it is, that it is not automatically populated, then they can show the QR code on their phone or scan another at the exit. The payment is normal, you can pay via cash or debit card,” Williams explained.

“For persons who are not so familiar or tech-savvy, we are trying to ensure that we do some more public education campaigns. We will have persons at the entrance who can show them how to access the feature and to give further instructions. We will ensure that this happens for a period of at least 10 days once the feature has been launched,” she assured.

Toll evasion in Jamaica is a criminal offence under the Toll Roads Act, resulting in fines up to $10,000 or 30 days’ imprisonment per count for non-payment. Authorities, including TransJamaican Highway
— concessionaires for the tolled motorway running between Portmore and Kingston, and Kingston and Manchester
— use surveillance and police enforcement to target offenders, especially those tailgating or using stolen tags, which can lead to higher penalties.