A private toll road operator in Colorado is suing Tesla Inc. over alleged unpaid tolls. As per the toll operator’s complaint, the electric car company has failed to pay on time for thousands of trips made by its company vehicles.
Northwest Parkway LLC, which maintains and operates the connector toll road between Highway E-470 and US Highway 36, filed a lawsuit in Broomfield County District Court last week alleging that vehicles with license plates registered to Tesla’s store in Littleton have racked up more than $34,000 in unpaid Go-Pass tolls.
“Ongoing and continuous use of the Northwest Parkway by the motor vehicle(s) registered to defendant Tesla Inc. constitutes consent and agreement to the terms of use and creates a binding contract between Tesla Inc. and plaintiff Northwest Parkway LLC…
“The failure to pay Go-Pass toll bills on time is a breach of the contract for use of the Northwest Parkway and subjects defendant Tesla Inc. to additional fees and legal action,” the complaint noted.
The Northwest Parkway was opened to traffic in late 2003, though tolls were only collected starting in 2004. Northwest Parkway LLC signed a 99-year lease with the Northwest Parkway Public Highway Authority in November 2007, which granted the company the right to collect tolls in exchange for maintaining the highway, as noted in a BizWest report.
Go-Pass tolls for two-axle vehicles on the Northwest Parkway range from $1.70 to $5.20 per trip. Considering that Tesla is accused of racking up over $34,000 in unpaid tolls, the electric vehicle maker’s dealership vehicles appear to have used the Northwest Parkway up to 20,000 times without paying.
Tesla has not responded to requests for comment on the lawsuit as of writing.
Back in May 2022, Elon Musk noted on X, then called Twitter, that Tesla was forming a “hardcore litigation department” that would handle cases against the electric vehicle maker. At the time, Musk noted that the team would never surrender or settle if the case against the company was unjust, and the team would never seek victory if a case against Tesla was just.
Considering that the private toll road operator’s claims seem straightforward, it would not be surprising if Tesla ends up paying the $34,000 in unpaid fees from its company vehicles without any issue.
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