Drivers passing through Virginia now have one less toll to worry about.
On Friday, Aug. 8, the Virginia Department of Transportation eliminated tolls on the George P. Coleman Bridge, located along Route 17 in York County.
Ending those fees was part of Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s 2025 Budget, which called for the elimination of the tolls no later than Jan. 1, 2026. According to a release from the governor’s office, the state DOT expedited that process, eliminating tolls nearly five months ahead of schedule.
“Eliminating tolls on the Coleman Bridge is more than just a financial decision; it’s a commitment to easing the burden on families, commuters and local businesses who rely on this vital connection every day,” Youngkin said in a statement. “By removing this toll, we are putting nearly $60 million back into the pockets of hardworking Virginians, allowing them to keep more of their hard-earned money and strengthen our local economy.”
Tolling on the bridge began in 1996, after a renovation that widened the bridge from two to four lanes. Despite the original bond debt incurred for the renovation being paid in full, an additional $29.6 million in outstanding debt was still owed to the state’s Toll Facility Revolving Account. The governor’s office said tolling would need to continue through at least 2034 in order to repay that debt, costing motorists an estimated $60 million.
Additionally, state officials said the bridge would require a nearly $5 million upgrade to its toll collection operations, with the current infrastructure “at the end of its useful life.” Rather than incur additional costs, the state opted to end the tolls, with the remaining debt being waived.
“The Commonwealth of Virginia has fulfilled its obligation to repay the bond debt for the Coleman Bridge, so it’s time to stop asking Virginians to pay tolls on this facility, and we are doing so five months early,” Virginia Secretary of Transportation W. Sheppard Miller III said in a statement. “There are extensive costs required to continue tolling, and we believe that the toll money collected would be better off in the hands of taxpayers.”
Touted as the largest double-swing span bridge in the U.S., the bridge stretches 3,750 feet across the York River, connecting Gloucester Point to Yorktown. LL
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