If there’s one place you should visit with your family and friends this year, it’s definitely Florida. Especially if you are traveling in a recreational vehicle, this state is the ultimate destination.
Fishing, boating, hiking, eating out—you name it. Thanks to its warm and cozy climate, you can enjoy all of them better in Florida than in other places. No wonder this state is a haven for snowbirds and beachgoers.
Florida is popular among RV owners due to its vast network of campgrounds and RV parks near most tourist attractions. Travelers don’t have trouble looking for spots to stay for longer because they are all over the state.
However, a travel trailer is better than a motorhome, as many attractions are close to each other. It would be impractical to take your RV everywhere you go. Instead, you can park near the beach or at a safe spot on the Everglades and use your tow vehicle to explore the area.
Don’t forget about the toll roads
The idea of exploring Florida can be too exciting that some travelers forget about the cost it entails. FYI, a significant chunk of your expenses will come from the tolls. Many highways and roads going to Florida’s top attractions require specific fees.
They are small and almost negligible individually but add them up, and you’ll see why they should be in your budget. And tolls for large vehicles like RVs are significantly higher, so you might want to double the allocation.
Besides the high cost, stopping to pay the toll can be inconvenient. It can even cause traffic during peak season, cutting your travel time by several hours per day.
Sometimes, the technology they use to collect tolls at the gates malfunction, further delaying the process. It’s best to prepare for these setbacks when you visit Florida or any state.
SunPass makes paying tolls easier
More cars are manufactured and sold than sent to scrapyards. It’s only a matter of time before the roads in top destinations like Florida become inundated by vehicles, and toll gates are making things worse.
Then again, we can’t get rid of toll gates because that’s how we pay the organizations that built and now maintain those roads for us. The Florida government has a clever solution to these problems—SunPass.
SunPass is a prepaid toll program that allows drivers to pay tolls electronically. Instead of stopping at a toll booth to pay the toll cash, vehicle owners can install a transponder on their windshields that the toll booth can scan to collect payment automatically.
This transponder is linked to a prepaid account from which the toll system collects the payment.
Since SunPass is a government-sponsored program, it can be used on most toll roads and bridges in Florida. And because of its apparent benefits, SunPass now works on some toll roads and bridges in other states, including Georgia, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Virginia.
With SunPass, passing through toll gates only takes a few seconds, saving time and making trips more efficient. Apart from the convenience, you can also enjoy discounts that save you up to 25 percent on tolls.
While the registration and activation process may seem complicated, the installation is easy, involving nothing more than mounting a sticker on your windshield.
Sunpass Mini
SunPass offers two types of passes—SunPass Mini and SunPass Pro. SunPass Mini is the smaller and less expensive of these two. It’s a sticker that you can affix on the inside of your windshield.
If you’re wondering how a sticker can be scanned at a toll booth, it has a tiny electronic device you can feel with your fingers. SunPass Mini is available in various retail locations across Florida, including Publix, Walgreens, AMSCOT, and CVS Pharmacy.
Before choosing SunPass Mini, you should know its limitations first. Unlike SunPass Pro, it requires permanent installation, meaning once you’ve affixed it, you can no longer remove it, or else it won’t work.
This also means each sticker only works on the first vehicle you stick it on. Furthermore, you cannot use SunPass Mini on motorcycles. They only work on cars, trucks, and RVs. It also doesn’t come with a warranty. Once it gets damaged, your only option is to replace it.
Fix SunPass Mini Not Working
So you installed your SunPass Mini as instructed, but upon arriving at the first toll booth, you were told no payment went through. What should you do? It can be frustrating, especially if you don’t have the cash to pay alternatively.
Unfortunately, you can do nothing if the problem is due to transponder damage or defect. But to confirm that, you need to check a few things first.
1. Check if it’s completely activated.
Your SunPass Mini won’t work just by installing it on your windshield. It needs to be activated through the SunPass website. Go to the website and create an account.
You will be required to provide specific information, including the transponder ID; your full name, address, and contact information; your RV license plate number; and credit/debit card details. So to speed things up, have these details ready before creating an account.
If you’ve done this, but your transponder is still not working, it’s possible that the 24 hours activation period hasn’t ended yet. It usually takes 24 hours before your SunPass Mini becomes fully activated and ready to use on toll roads.
So take note of the time you’ve successfully created your account and start counting from there. Also, you must put a minimum of $10 on your account for it to be active. This is on top of the $4.99 you must pay to buy the transponder at a retail store.
2. Check if it’s installed correctly.
The SunPass Mini transponder is a sensitive device. A slight crease or fold can render it dysfunctional. This is why it’s essential to follow the instruction to the letter. Also, remember that your windshield will serve as the transponder’s antenna.
Therefore, its position and alignment must be precise, or you’ll always encounter issues whenever you pass through the scanner.
So if your SunPass Mini isn’t working, even though it’s fully activated, retrace your steps and recall how you handled the transponder from purchase to installation. For example, you might have accidentally dropped it and broken the electronics.
Or you probably installed it outside your windshield instead of inside, so now it’s exposed to the elements. Unfortunately, you can no longer correct whatever mistake you’ve made during the installation. The only solution is to get and activate a new one.
3. Check if it has enough funds.
Have you checked if your account still has funds? This is probably causing the problem, although you’ll typically be notified at the toll booth. Then again, it would be best to include funding your account in your plan.
After identifying the places you want to visit in Florida, take note of the toll roads you’ll have to pass through and sum up all the fees. Then, deposit enough funds in your account to cover those fees. Add some more for contingencies.
There are several ways you can fund your SunPass Mini account. For example, you can use your credit or debit card to pay at a SunPass retail location or mail a check or money order to the SunPass Customer Service Center. Or, if you don’t have time to go to a retail store, you can set up your account for automatic replenishment.
Why upgrade to SunPass Pro
If your SunPass Mini is causing you so much stress, you can always upgrade to SunPass Pro. It offers more flexibility than the SunPass Mini. For example, the SunPass Pro transponder can be moved from car to car, unlike SunPass Mini, which must be permanently adhered to your windshield.
So if you have several vehicles and want to save on toll fees from all of them, you can transfer the transponder to the vehicle you’ll use.
SunPass Pro also comes with a two-year warranty. SunPass Mini doesn’t. It works on motorcycles, too. Unlike SunPass Mini, it can be used anywhere E-ZPass is accepted, even in other states.
It costs $14.99, which is $10 more than the price of SunPass Mini, but for only that difference, you can enjoy so many perks. Eventually, it is predicted that they will discontinue SunPass Mini production as the technology evolves, so you better invest in SunPass Pro soon.