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# NTSB Urges Ohio Turnpike to Close Four Low-Speed Toll Lanes
- URL: https://www.theamericanquorum.com/state-news-ohio-2026-09-16-a/
- Published: 2026-09-16T20:24:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-16T20:24:00.000Z
- Description: Federal investigators want Ohio to replace mixed high- and low-speed tolling at four Turnpike plazas after finding the hybrid design and inadequate payment signs contributed to the severity of a fatal 2024 crash.
- Author: News Desk
- Tags: State News, Ohio

The National Transportation Safety Board is urging the Ohio Turnpike to eliminate low-speed toll lanes at four plazas after concluding that the highway's hybrid tolling design contributed to the severity of a 2024 crash near Swanton that killed two people.

In its [completed investigation](https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/Pages/HWY24MH013.aspx?ref=theamericanquorum.com), released Wednesday, the board recommended fully electronic, high-speed tolling at the Westgate, Swanton Township, Newton Falls and Eastgate plazas. It also told the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission to permanently close the low-speed lanes and provide a timetable for doing so.

The August 15, 2024, crash occurred when the driver of a Toyota Highlander decelerated in a high-speed lane and changed lanes toward the low-speed toll booths, crossing the path of a tractor-trailer. The truck struck the SUV, hit a concrete divider and overturned. Two passengers in the SUV died; its driver, another passenger and the truck driver were seriously injured.

## Board identifies design and information failures

The NTSB found that the SUV driver's lane change caused the collision and that fatigue likely reduced the driver's situational awareness. But it also found that the absence of signs explaining that missed tolls could be paid online contributed to the decision to cross toward the staffed lanes. The large speed difference between the vehicles worsened the crash, while failure to use seat belts contributed to the deaths and injuries.

The agency's Ohio-specific recommendations go beyond toll collection. It called for a systemwide review of emergency-access points, construction of new access where the review finds gaps, and faster completion of a planned access point near Swanton. The investigation also reiterated a recommendation that Ohio adopt primary enforcement of seat-belt requirements for every seating position equipped with a restraint.

The Turnpike Commission said it would carefully review the findings and remains committed to traveler safety, according to [its statement reported Wednesday](https://www.cleveland19.com/2026/09/16/ntsb-recommends-tolling-changes-along-ohio-turnpike-following-investigation-into-deadly-swanton-crash/?ref=theamericanquorum.com). The commission cited a 2025 fatal-crash rate below the national rate. The federal findings nonetheless create a concrete decision point for the commission: whether and when to remove the mixed high-speed and low-speed configuration.

## Ohio still accommodates manual payments

Ohio's current rules preserve that mixed system. The [Ohio Administrative Code](https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-administrative-code/rule-5537-2-17?ref=theamericanquorum.com) directs drivers without a valid electronic transponder to stop at toll plazas to obtain a ticket or pay, while properly equipped E-ZPass users may proceed through designated lanes at the posted speed.

The commission's own [traveler guidance](https://www.ohioturnpike.org/?ref=theamericanquorum.com) says its newer open-road lanes let E-ZPass customers continue at highway speed. Non-E-ZPass motorists are directed to gated booths accepting cash or credit cards; drivers who continue without paying may receive a higher toll by mail.

The federal board also asked the Federal Highway Administration to update national toll-plaza sign standards and distribute guidance on the safety benefits of fully electronic tolling. [Reuters reported](https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-safety-board-urges-fully-electronic-tolling-after-fatal-ohio-crash-2026-09-16/?ref=theamericanquorum.com) that the recommendation is intended for toll-road operators nationally, but Ohio is the immediate test case because all four named plazas remain under the state commission's control.