#MACPASS FOR CHROME DRIVERS#
If drivers wish to pay with credit or debit cards, the toll collector will hold the credit card device out to the driver so they can insert their card. What can customers do to reduce their risk while making payment at a bridge crossing?Ĭustomers are being encouraged to reduce their contact with toll staff by paying with credit/debit cards or a MacPass device. Paying with cash and requiring change being handed back to a customer creates additional contact points that are unnecessary as we work to practice social distancing. This temporary measure to stop the exchange of cash may help to protect MBA toll staff as well as the customers they service. Why is the Mackinac Bridge Authority (MBA) temporarily halting cash payments amid the COVID-19 outbreak? We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in reducing the coronavirus risk. The state is taking proactive steps to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in Michigan. The MBA previously announced suspension of its driver assistance program and snowmobile, passenger and bicyclist transportation programs as part of its response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Frequent users of the bridge may wish to open a MacPass account at. So far this month, about 64 percent of customers have paid the bridge tolls with cash, 7 percent with credit/debit cards, and 29 percent with MacPass cards or windshield stickers. Information on this new payment policy will be posted on the MBA website, and on the toll plaza marquee. Drivers will not need to hand their cards to the toll collector. "We'll reevaluate this policy as the situation evolves." "We realize this change may be an inconvenience for many of our customers, but eliminating the handling of cash between drivers and our employees is one more way we can help slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus," said MBA Executive Secretary Kim Nowack. The MBA and toll staff will be encouraging transition to non-cash payments for the next few days until cash is no longer accepted. Until further notice, Mackinac Bridge customers will need to pay with a credit or debit card, or use a MacPass card or windshield sticker. Gretchen Whitmer and Michigan Department of Health and Human Services' recommendations designed to help prevent the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), the Mackinac Bridge Authority (MBA) will not accept cash transactions starting March 21.