If you commute to work in or near a large city, there's a good chance you have to pay a toll of some sort. Some roads are more expensive to drive on than others. Can you name the most costly toll road in the world? Odds are you'll be surprised by the answer.
Surely New York state, with its expensive bridges and lengthy Thruway limited-access highway, would be number one. Or maybe Texas, with its massive stretches of open asphalt and high speed limits. Or maybe it's one of the international highways of central Europe, many of which cost a pretty penny to use.
Nope! According to a study released by Australian insurance seller Budget Direct, the most expensive toll road on earth isn't in Switzerland, California, or Germany. It's in Pennsylvania. That's right, the Pennsylvania Turnpike is the number one most expensive road to drive on, with a maximum toll of $112.90 for a standard passenger vehicle if you drive it from end to end.
How does a highway in Pennsylvania come out more pricey than the toll roads of notoriously expensive-to-drive places like Austria and Swizerland? It comes down to the length. The Pennsylvania Turnpike stretches nearly the entire width of that particularly broad state, from Philadelphia all the way to the Ohio border, a total of 360 miles. So while the per-mile cost isn't unreasonable—it comes out to about 31 cents a mile—it adds up.
Following the Pennsylvania Turnpike on the list is Austria's Grossglockner High Alpine Road, a mountain pass north of Italy. It costs the equivalent of $45.43 to drive the full length. Third on the list is the A1 Motorway in Croatia, which charges a maximum of $38.42.
On average, the U.S. is relatively affordable when it comes to tolls. The study names Switzerland the most expensive country for tolls, with the average charge coming out to $26.52. Austria is second most expensive, averaging $16.31, while the U.S. comes in at number 11, averaging just $5.38.
The study, which analyzed over 400 toll roads around the world, found that only three of the top 10 most expensive toll roads are found in the United States. New York's Thruway came in at number eight on the list, with a maximum price of $28.05. It's followed by the Florida Turnpike, ninth on the list, which costs a maximum of $26.45 driving end-to-end. (All toll costs in Budget Direct's analysis were calculated during the most expensive time of day, and assumed cash payment to avoid any discounts for automatic toll systems or special rates for local residents.)
The study also analyzed America's cheapest toll roads. It found that the Boulevard Bridge in Virginia, with its $0.35 toll, is the least expensive toll road in the United States.
If you want to check out the full study, head on over to Budget Direct's site.
Brian Silvestro is Hearst Autos' former lead deputy editor for rankings content. He spent over seven years as a staff writer for Road & Track Magazine where he contributed car reviews, industry interviews, and more. He has a taste for high-mileage, rusted-out projects and amateur endurance racing.
