Stopping to add rental car license plate to E-Pass account

[Ralph&Pam]

I just purchased the portable E-Pass transponder to use on our trips to WDW to take advantage of the express lanes rather than paying cash or the car rental convenience fees. I’ll need to add the rental car license plate to my E-Pass account as we leave the airport. I’m concerned about cell phone coverage in the garage, and I always take the south exit to 417. Is the cell phone lot along the access road a reasonable place to pull in to stop and complete this activity? I would like to verify that I’ll be able to rejoin the access road heading toward 417 when I exit the cell lot without having to backtrack through the airport. I figure some of the frequent renters on this board might have some advice in this regard. Thanks in advance.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Not sure you can do that - can you access the cell lot outbound? I couldn't find the right (graphic enough) map to see if there's a crossover.

You could choose a car, load and lock ot (take the key!) then walk over to an outside wall and submit the plate number. Or even drive to an open outer-edge space.

This suggestion assumes, of course, that nonody else has a netter response .

 

[joelkfla]

Google Earth (image captured 5 months ago):


Heading south from terminal:


Exiting cell phone lot: Just turn right at the light.
(The next 2 images are old, but you can see in the Google Earth capture that you can still make the turn.)

 

[barbliny]

We have found that cell phone data service is horrible in the parking garages and surrounding areas.

We just make a phone call and add the plate - it takes just a few minutes and voice service works well in the garage structures. It saves time and frustration.

 

[katallo]

We call as well. However, our Sunpass works great EXCEPT for the 2 tolls on 417 to WDW. They never seem to record and we always have a battle. After I call I always ask when we can begin using the Sunpass. They say immediately but evidently that is not true because it's happened to us 3 times, same two tolls.

When we land in Tampa for Siesta Key, no problem on the SkyWay Bridge.

 

[erionm]

We call as well. However, our Sunpass works great EXCEPT for the 2 tolls on 417 to WDW. They never seem to record and we always have a battle. After I call I always ask when we can begin using the Sunpass. They say immediately but evidently that is not true because it's happened to us 3 times, same two tolls.

Those tolls on SR-417 are NOT operated by SunPass. They are operated by CFX which runs E-Pass. It takes at least a day for vehicle changes on your SunPass account to be sent to E-Pass.

 

[katallo]

Unfortunately for us they never took, After a two month discussion with Sunpass it was resolved. Oddly, on each trip the same two tolls returning to MCO record by the time we get on our plane.

 

[Ralph&Pam]

Google Earth (image captured 5 months ago):
View attachment 398765

Heading south from terminal:
View attachment 398761

Exiting cell phone lot: Just turn right at the light.
(The next 2 images are old, but you can see in the Google Earth capture that you can still make the turn.)
View attachment 398762
View attachment 398763

Perfect. Thanks.

 

[Ralph&Pam]

Those tolls on SR-417 are NOT operated by SunPass. They are operated by CFX which runs E-Pass. It takes at least a day for vehicle changes on your SunPass account to be sent to E-Pass.

That’s one of the reasons I went with E-Pass rather than Sunpass, since our principal Florida travel is on 417 between MCO and WDW and on 528 between MCO and Port Canaveral Cruise Port. Both those stretches are CFX. The fact that the E-Pass transponder was only $10.60, delivered via US Mail (with no additional charge for the postage which was $3.78) was a second factor, although I've read here that the web site for CFX is not as convenient as the app for Sunpass.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

If you rent from Alamo you only pay for the using the service on days you actually drive on a toll road.. So you are only charged the cost which would be $4.95 for a day which is a 24 hr period (AKA if first used at 5:30 pm then it would be good till 5:30 p.m the next day) plus the tolls. No need to worry about packing a device and entering rental car info onto your acct.

 

[charmed59]

Just a warning. When we moved to Florida we got a SunPass and attached the sticker transponder to our car, which was still registered in NC. A year later, when we moved full time to Florida we registered our car here, turned in our NC plates and got a Florida license plate. We forgot about adding the license plate into our account as trips everywhere are registering to our SunPass, so we were good.

Two year later we started getting lots of additional charges on our SunPass account. Logged into the account and the charges were all from our former NC plates using toll roads in NC without a transponder. Once we took the NC plates out of our account those charges stopped, but I’m sure the new car owner in NC was very confused when the started getting red lights flashing on their morning commute.

So be sure to take the license plate out of your account as soon as you return the car.

 

[Ralph&Pam]

If you rent from Alamo you only pay for the using the service on days you actually drive on a toll road.. So you are only charged the cost which would be $4.95 for a day which is a 24 hr period (AKA if first used at 5:30 pm then it would be good till 5:30 p.m the next day) plus the tolls. No need to worry about packing a device and entering rental car info onto your acct.

Actually, the Alamo charge is $3.95 per day for a 24-hour period. To this, add an extra 20 cents service charge per cash toll along with the actual cost of the cash tolls. Driving from WDW to or from Port Canaveral (total of 4 tolls each way), I paid $10.75 each way, $3.95 + $0.80 + $6.00. Cash tolls themselves would be $6.00 each way (two $1.75 tolls on 417, one $1.50 and one $$1.00 toll on 528). That means I paid $9.50 just in service fees round trip, since these were two separate 24-hour periods. We make this trip twice a year, along with another round trip between MCO and WDW for which the service fees total $4.35 each way ($3.95 + $0.40 for the two extra 20 cent charges on the cash tolls). For us, the one-time transponder cost of $10.60 (tax and delivery included) will be paid for rather quickly.

 

[PatMcDuck]

Lately I stopped adding the rental car to my Sunpass account. It has not been a problem, I have the regular kind, not the sticker. I just used mine last week, I meant to add the rental car when I got to my resort hotel (but forgot). Once I went to enter the info at that cell phone lot, late at night, and it was creepy out there in the dark.

I do not advocate this, I just have been forgetting or been lazy the last few trips.

 

[goofy4tink]

I always stop in the south cell phone lot and enter my info. I’ve never had an issue with any tolls between mco and Celebration.

 

[Capt_BJ]

Lately I stopped adding the rental car to my Sunpass account. It has not been a problem

Normally it won't be a problem. You put the plate info on the account to serve as a 'backup'. To review what I've explained b4 .... here's a quik overview of how the electronic systems work (in FL anyway)

car drives past/under a 'reader'

1. system looks for a transponder (in the car) ... if found charge the account; if no, continue

2. electronically 'read' the tag, search individual account database (SUNPASS / E-PASS) for the tag .... if found charge the account; if no, continue
(if you don't PUT the tag info in the system you shut this backup off .... sometimes the readers just MISS the transponder .... dunno why)

3. check the 'fleet registration' file for the tag {this is where the major rental companies and things like truck companies and taxi companies have their accounts) ... if found charge the account; if no, continue (how the rental company passes this charge to you is where the different rental company policies come in to play as well as crazy service charges. The COMPANY paid the regular toll rate .... what they charge you however . . . )

4. If all this fails the toll is handled as an 'exception' and what happens differs by WHERE in the state (FL) the toll was. In ELECTRIC ONLY areas like MIAMI a bill is sent once a month to the registered owner (plus a small service charge) this is classic 'toll by plate'. In the Orlando area where CASH is an option, you have 'run a toll' and may very well receive a ticket in the mail. In experience I've seen few reports of this happening for ONE infraction ... but each additional one makes the odds go UP.

There are a lot of details left out but this is the basics. I can tell you from experience that correctly entered info can avoid problems. I've driven toll roads with my SUNPASS not even in the car ... but the tolls where charged to my account .... no harm, no foul (or should I say that dd drove for months not realizing the SUNPASS we provided her was sitting on her desk and not in the car!! "Hey, what's your SUNPASS doing sitting here?" )

**********************
So be sure to take the license plate out of your account as soon as you return the car.

In the SUNPASS APP for the PORTABLE transponder, when you add a vehicle and ID it as a rental you can enter an EXPIRE day/time ..... to prevent 'forgetting' like this.

 

[jeff_h]

I just purchased the portable E-Pass transponder to use on our trips to WDW to take advantage of the express lanes rather than paying cash or the car rental convenience fees. I’ll need to add the rental car license plate to my E-Pass account as we leave the airport. I’m concerned about cell phone coverage in the garage, and I always take the south exit to 417. Is the cell phone lot along the access road a reasonable place to pull in to stop and complete this activity? I would like to verify that I’ll be able to rejoin the access road heading toward 417 when I exit the cell lot without having to backtrack through the airport. I figure some of the frequent renters on this board might have some advice in this regard. Thanks in advance.

I bought 2 transponders for this same reason, and have made 5 trips with them and opened the Sunpass app on my phone in the garage and added license plate info as we loaded luggage into the cars -- have never had an issue with the cell coverage in the garage and it's worked fine each time.

 

[joelkfla]

have never had an issue with the cell coverage in the garage and it's worked fine each time.

Who's your carrier?

 

[GoingToFlorida]

On my last trip, I had a hard time getting cell coverage in south cell lot. Took several attempts to load the sunpass web site. I was roaming on AT&T. I agree with other’s, walk to the edge of the parking garage for better cell coverage.

 

[jeff_h]

Who's your carrier?

Virgin Mobile - which is a step-child of Sprint. I rent from Hertz or Budget, which IIRC are on Levels 2 and 3 of the garage, I don't know if that's a factor but like PP said if coverage is spotty then walking to the edge of the garage will probably help.

 

[Disneypro1]

I have a friend that does that exact thing when he rents..you can do it. I wish i could tell you how to go about it...he is the expert at that..lol