BATON ROUGE, La. – Tolling will resume at noon Monday, Aug. 3, on the new La 1 Bridge over Bayou Lafourche, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) announced Thursday.

DOTD Secretary William D. Ankner encouraged customers to go online at www.geauxpass.com ahead of time to sign up for a GeauxPass or one-time pass to avoid an extended wait in line at the Customer Service Center in Golden Meadow.

“Our customers can go to the web site and take care of their business from the comfort of their home or office, which is really more convenient than interrupting their trip by stopping at the Customer Service Center,” Ankner said. “We think most people would rather go online than wait in line.”

To setup a GeauxPass account or to purchase a one-time pass online, you must provide your name and contact information, driver’s license number, license plate number and a valid Visa or MasterCard. After the account is set up, the Customer Service Center will mail the customer a GeauxPass transponder, an electronic device that attaches to the windshield and identifies the customer. Customers who sign up for a GeauxPass online will be able to cross the bridge in the interim period before they receive the transponder in the mail.

Because La 1 employs state-of-the-art “open road tolling,” there is no tollbooth or money-collection system at the bridge. Customers who have not signed up for a GeauxPass or a one-time pass must stop at the Customer Service Center, 1821 La. 3235 (Alex Plaisance Blvd.), to purchase a pass before crossing the bridge. To accommodate the initial rush of customers, the center will remain open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Tolls on La 1 were suspended for one week to allow technicians to repair a computer system glitch that prevented cash payments from being processed at the Customer Service Center in Golden Meadow.

Beginning Friday, DOTD also will have extra personnel on hand at the Customer Service Center to help credit card customers process GeauxPass and one-time pass requests. Secretary Ankner encouraged customers to use credit or debit cards wherever possible instead of cash.

“We can provide faster service to credit and debit card customers than to cash customers, and the accounts can be programmed so that the cards will automatically keep the account up to date,” Ankner said. “Cash customers may face longer lines, but we are processing requests as quickly as possible. I’d like to thank our customers for their patience as we all work through this start-up process.”

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