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Extra toll charge for carrying a bike on car
Has anybody else out there ever been charged a heavy vehicle rate on the M5 (or other motorway) for carrying a bike?
I have a charge from Roam for using the M5 motorway at the $9.30 rate rather than the $4.40 rate. I've asked them to explain why and they believe I was either a 3-axle vehicle (towing) or to tall. I don't have a tow bar, so reviewing my calendar it was a trip made coming back from a weekend of riding in Canberra. The higher rate applies to any vehicle over 2.8 metres in height (including any load it is carrying). My car is 1.8m tall so it is possible that the rack and bike take it over 2.8m, but I have done this trip heaps of times and not been charged before.
Has anyone else been charged this? Is it fair to pay $4.40 for a car and then an extra $4.90 for the bicycle it was carrying? I'm pursuing the issue further to try and get a proper explanation. Maybe this would be an interesting puff piece for the Herald?
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... mean they read you as a truck and charge accordingly. I've had it happen once on the M2 with a bike propped up with other luggage on the roof rack on the Prado. Rang up and they put it back to a normal vehicle charge, but that was a few years ago. Maybe they are getting tougher, but it would be worth keeping on at them about it. You are not a truck....
Using an Emu pass with the Thule bike rack on (tow bar mounted) I was charged extra, now I have a permanent pass I'm not.
I dont think its fair and would be persuing reimbursement.
I just got confirmation that the charge will be corrected. They have advised me to check the height of the bike on the car. So if it turns out I am 2.8m... I guess I'll have to stop at the tollway and walk the bike across the gate... Sure, I can call them every time it happens, but I'd rather spend that 25 minutes doing something other than whinging to call centre workers over on the phone!
What do you mean by walking the bike across
Just checked and yep I've been charged heavy vehicle fees for using the M7 since last year. Guess that means a call in the morning to see if I can get reimbursed as well!
The gate that pipped me was the River Road on ramp. There is an etag and a cash lane there. I theoretically could pull over at the side, walk my bike past the booth, drive through the eTag gate, and then put the bike back on top... Yeah, I'm not really serious about doing that.
I did come up from Canberra through the main toll point after leaving the Hume Hwy earlier that day and I was tolled as a regular car for that journey. The sensors seem to be pretty inconsistent.
Mmm, I should loggin and check my history.