By Jim Radcliffe
Q: Hello Mr. Honk! I read your column religiously and this is something that bothers me: On a trip back East, I packed my FasTrak transponder so I could use it in my rental car for the 鈥 too many 鈥 tollways they have back there. Of course, it wasn鈥檛 compatible 鈥 but why not? Why not one transponder system for the whole country?
鈥 Parker Cross Jr., San Pedro
A: That just might happen in the somewhat near future, Parker.
鈥淗opefully, hopefully, three or four years from now we are all connected,鈥 said PJ Wilkins, executive director of the E-ZPass Group, which helps toll agencies in 20 Eastern states offer a transponder good for use on all of their tollways.
There has been discussion about a transponder that could work across the country, if the scores, if not hundreds, of agencies that use transponders opt in.
Technology isn鈥檛 the biggest hurdle, Wilkins said, but making everything work on the business side is more complicated.
鈥淲e are working with central and western states,鈥 Wilkins said. 鈥淲e meet every two weeks. 鈥 Most of the country will be connected by next year.鈥
Not California, which would first need approval from state lawmakers. But that could certainly come about.
Here, for now, FasTrak is what the various toll agencies use across the state. When using a tollway in California, the charge goes onto the bill put out by the motorist鈥檚 home agency, the one he or she signed up with.
Wilkins said the same thing would happen if a true national transponder comes about.
HONKIN鈥 UPDATE: As promised last week, here is more info on vanity, or personalized, license plates:
鈥 Unlike standard plates, they belong to the owner and not to the vehicle.
鈥 They can be passed along to someone else.
鈥 If the plates鈥 owner, new or old, doesn鈥檛 pay the retention fee to keep them on their vehicle or in a drawer, for that matter, 鈥渢he configuration is available for anyone to purchase,鈥 Ronald Ongtoaboc, a Department of Motor Vehicles spokesman, told Honk.
鈥 If you have the plates hanging up in the garage for fun, and someone steals them, you should take action or plan to just keep on paying. 鈥淭he owner would not be subject to the fee if the plates are stolen and they do not request a replacement,鈥 Ongtoaboc said. 鈥(But) the owner would need to submit a police report under penalty of perjury stating that the plates were indeed stolen.鈥
HONKIN鈥 FACT: At least five children in the United States died in hot vehicles over eight days in late June, said Kids and Car Safety, a nonprofit. They were 3 months to 5 years old. Since 1990, that makes at least 1,139 children lost in such circumstances. An estimated 88% of children who die in hot vehicles are 3 years old or younger, Amber Rollins, the group鈥檚 director, told Honk.
To ask Honk questions, reach him at honk@ocregister.com. He only answers those that are published. To see Honk online: ocregister.com/tag/honk. Twitter: @OCRegisterHonk