Hwy. 407 To Offer Rewards Program For Frequent Users
Posted January 29, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It sounds like a great bargain – but is it?
Drivers who get a lot of use out of Highway 407 are about to be rewarded for their loyalty.
Those who traverse the toll road on a regular basis will apparently be given free access to the pay route on weekends and a card that could save them as much as nine cents per litre of gas if they fill up at certain stations.
Reports suggest the program will work on a sliding scale and that those who travel up to 1,500 kilometres a month will reap the biggest benefits.
Drivers will be informed by mail of just how much they qualify for.
The plan could save users as much as $40 million in tolls over the next four years and will be announced Thursday – the same day all motorists will be paying increased fares to use the expressway.
“This is a special type of rewards program, not like other loyalty programs where it’s meant to, you know, drive a lot of more customers to your product,” explains spokesman Dale Albers. “Last thing we want to do is cause more congestion on the highway.”
But drivers are mixed on the new offer, arguing few people use the 407 that much every month and many only need it to get to work on weekdays – making the weekend offer less than attractive.
“The amount of times that you have to use the highway, I don’t know how many people use it that much, so what they going to be handing out is to very few people and very few amounts of incentives,” feels truck driver Vander Stevenson.
But mortgage broker Marisa Parisa thinks it will help her. “I am on the road quite a bit for work travelling from different municipalities and suburbs. It would definitely benefit. Any added help that would offset the fees would be beneficial.”
But the corporation that runs the 407 E.T.R. isn’t doing it all out of the goodness of its heart. It’s believed the loyalty program is part of a move to settle a lawsuit launched by the province over rising toll prices along the route.
To see what the coming toll changes are, click here.
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