NYC driver hit with $14K bill, suspended license despite paying E-ZPass tolls on time: ‘I was on top of it’
A New York City professional driver is facing financial ruin after the MTA hit him with more than $14,000 in E-ZPass late fees, leading to the suspension of his license—even though he insists he paid his tolls on time.
Luis Corporan, a veteran driver licensed through the Taxi and Limousine Commission, has not earned a paycheck since receiving a notice from the DMV on February 9 informing him that his driving privileges were revoked. The notice also outlined escalating fees tied to tolls he believed he had already settled, CBS New York reported.
A father of four, Corporan says his attempts to appeal the fines have gone nowhere. “As drivers, we have to stay on top of everything, and I was on top of it, paying my toll bills,” he told CBS.
The sheer size of the fines left him in shock. “When I heard the amount, I had no words. I just hung up and started thinking, where would I get the money from?” he said.
Though he had occasionally received notices from the MTA, Corporan assumed they were reminders for tolls he had already paid through the app. He is now questioning why his E-ZPass tag seemed to work at some tolls but not others. “Why wasn’t it reading it here, but then it actually started reading here?” he asked, reviewing the detailed bill.
When he sought to negotiate with the MTA’s toll payer advocate, Corporan says the agency offered a settlement of roughly $8,000—but only if he could pay by the end of the day. Unable to meet that deadline, his debt continues to grow.
CBS reported that the MTA declined to address the specifics of Corporan’s situation. In a general statement, the agency said, “People who pay their tolls don’t pay fines,” labeling this case and others as instances of “willful persistent toll evasion.” The Post did not immediately receive a response from the agency.
State Assemblyman Mike Reilly, citing similar stories of drivers burdened by enormous penalties, is pushing legislation to cap the fees the MTA can impose. “To me, that is just sheer not caring about people,” Reilly told CBS. “Even though something is legal doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the right thing to do. We just haven’t passed my legislation that limits what they can charge.”
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