More NJ toll roads, bridges temporarily go cashless

All of New Jersey's toll bridges and highways have now temporarily stopped accepting cash payment as a way of practicing social distancing to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

The Betsy Ross, Ben Franklin, Walt Whitman and Commodore Barry bridges all went cashless for the Thursday morning commute, according to the operator of all four crossings, the Delaware River Port Authority.

The Delaware Memorial Bridge also stopped taking cash on Thursday along with the Atlantic City Expressway on Wednesday

Drivers without E-ZPass can drive through any open lane and a photo will be taken of the license plate. An invoice for the amount of the toll will be sent to the registered owner of the vehicle. No administrative fees will be charged.

Going cashless eliminates contact between drivers and toll takers to reduce the risk of community spread of the coronavirus..

NJ Transit, whose ridership is down 90% this week according to Gov. Phil Murphy, continues to operate rail service on an enhanced President's Day schedule.

The Atlantic City Line is operating on a normal schedule.

PATCO is running a modified weekday schedule through Friday with trains running every 15-20 minutes but is closing four stations on Saturday until further notice: Ashland, Westmont, City Hall and 12/13th & Locust St. Weekday service will continue to operate 24/7 every 20 minutes between 5 a.m and 11:59 p.m.

"The adjustments meet the demands of current ridership and are necessary in order to sustain the continuity of service for essential riders," PATCO spokesman Mike Williams said in a statement.

The RiverLine light rail is operating on a Sunday/holiday schedule.

The Newark light rail is running a Saturday schedule.

Buses and the Hudson/Bergen light rail are running normal schedules.

SEPTA has moved all service to a Saturday schedule.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ