BEREA: A record number of vehicles traveled the Ohio Turnpike last year.
The Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission reports that 54.9 million vehicles used the highway, which stretches 241 miles across northern Ohio. That bested the previous record of 53.4 million set in 2015.
The commission also says it recorded the second most number of vehicle miles traveled at 3.037 billion miles. The record, about 2.6 million more than last year, was set in 2006.
“An improving economy, relatively low gas prices and mild weather all contributed to record traffic volume in 2016,” Executive Director Randy Cole said in a prepared statement. “Our year-end results reflect our quality and value for the movement of goods and people.”
The commission says 57.1 percent of all vehicles used E-ZPass, an increase of 2.2 percent. The turnpike collected $288 million in toll revenue last year. That was a 2.9 percent increase compared with $280 million collected the previous year.