SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. and Ontario — The Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge will begin to phase out its Prox toll cards starting March 31.
The phase out will apply to commercial companies as well.
Prox cards for personal commuter accounts will be accepted for toll payments through the end of the year. Customers will have to use the card in the “all traffic” lanes staffed with a toll collector after March 31.
“Staff at the International Bridge have been reaching out to transport companies directly since early fall 2022 to let them know,” Michigan Department of Transportation Superior Region Communications Representative Dan Weingarten said. “Commercial companies have until March 31 to switch to tags.
He said that the companies were notified directly of this deadline.
“Many companies have already switched over to the new RF tags and are ready to go with the new system,” Weingarten said. “Those customers that have not switched by March 31 will be restricted to the cash/debit/credit lanes until they get their cards replaced.”
Existing Prox card customers can keep their current accounts and replace their cards with new tags. Based on enthusiastic adoption of the new tags, the International Bridge Administration is now beginning to remove obsolete readers from the toll lanes.
Commercial accounts will no longer be able to use Prox commercial cards after March 31. After this date, commercial customers must use a new International Bridge IQ tag or a Blue Water Bridge Edge Pass or ConneXion tag. Blue Water Bridge tags must be added to an IBA account to function correctly. Cash, credit card, Google Pay, and Apply Pay payments will also be accepted at the booth.
Removal of Prox card readers will begin on April 1. Overhead message signs in the toll lanes will notify customers that the lane is open to “all traffic” or “tag only.”
The changes are part of the ongoing joint $9.3 million project to modernize toll systems at the Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge (connecting Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, with Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario) and the Blue Water Bridge (connecting Port Huron, Michigan, to Point Edward, Ontario).
All existing customers have online accounts that can be accessed at tolls.saultbridge.com. The website allows users to manage their toll accounts and provides access instructions and answers to frequently asked questions. On the website, customers can review transactions, make one-time payments or set up automatic payments, request new or replacement tags, cancel tags, generate statements, and more.
For more information on the International Bridge, please visit www.saultbridge.com. Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/saultbridge.
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