Class-Action Suit Says Express Lane Operator Is Gouging Commuters: Media Reports

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Three commuters have filed a class-action suit against the company that operates the Beltway’s express lanes, charging that it pursues abusive toll-collection practices.

The lawsuit, filed this week in federal court in Alexandria, alleges that the company, Transurban, is not following the law and owes millions in damages to the public, radio station WTOP reported.

Transurban also operates E-ZPass express lanes that run down the middle of Interstate 95, from the Springfield interchange down to Garrisonville Road in Stafford County. The lanes opened in December.

In the lawsuit, one plaintiff said she owed Transurban $4.95 in unpaid tolls, but Transurban pursued her for $3,413.75, WTOP reported. Another said she was charged $17,000 for $36 in unpaid tolls.

A Transurban spokesman did not respond directly to the lawsuit, but he defended the company’s toll-collection practices on the I-495 express lanes.

“We do not want to see a single customer in court,” spokesman Mike McGurk told WTOP.

The company suffered a legal reversal last week when a Fairfax judge dismissed four cases that it filed against a Fredericksburg woman. The judge ruled that the statute of limitations had expired before Transurban took her to court. The decision could pave the way for hundreds of commuters to get their fines dismissed.

Want to take a look at the class-action lawsuit? Click here.