Politics & Government

Good to Go Website Faces More Hurdles; Customers Again Asked to Wait

The state's new website to manage drivers' electronic tolling accounts faces more issues. Improvements coming in the next week; customers again asked to wait.

The state's Good to Go website continues to undergo upgrades because of customer issues with accessing the electronic website for toll accounts, according to the Washington Department of Transportation.

Good to Go is the electronic tolling system that the state will use when it starts to charge motorists to cross the State Route 520 bridge. The Good To Go system is the least expensive way to pay for the toll. The system also can pay for the express toll lanes and to the Tacoma Narrows Bridge toll. The 520 toll is 

In the first day of the website launch, the Good To Go s

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The latest issue occurred this weekend when existing customers received an e-mail this past weekend encouraging them to update their security settings for the new Good to Go system, according to a press release by the DOT. This significantly increased website visits and calls to the customer service centers, which in turn increased wait times and dropped calls.

Despite the issues, more than 18,000 new Good To Go accounts and 20,000 new passes have been established since Feb. 15, the date that the state launched the new Good To Go website, according to the state.

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In response to feedback, Good To Go! customer service vendor Electronic Transaction Consultants (ETCC) reconfigured the website to reduce download times and security requirements while maintaining account security, the Washington DOT said in a press release. ETCC also hired additional customer service staff, installed more phone lines and is upgrading the website to improve the customer experience. 

“We are still experiencing a high volume of requests that at times exceed our current capacity,” Toll Division director Craig Stone said in a prepared statement. “We’re working closely with ETCC to fix these problems as soon as possible. We apologize for the delays our customers are experiencing and ask for their continued patience.”

Since launching the new system, customers have faced long wait times and dropped calls when contacting the service centers. Customers accessing the new website have expressed frustration with long download times, enhanced security requirements and incompatibility with certain Web browsers, according to a press release by the state.

“Customer satisfaction is of the utmost importance to us,” ETCC CEO Tim Gallagher said in a prepared statement. “We have been challenged in the first weeks of operations given the higher-than-expected call volumes and are working closely with WSDOT to meet the expectations of our customers. We are working diligently to make the needed changes to meet the high demand for the Good to Go program.” 

ETCC is implementing a new online web feature that simplifies the process for existing customers who forgotten their PIN codes. This process is expected to be in place by Monday, March 7 and will allow existing customers to update their settings without having to call the customer service center. 

Other improvements scheduled for next week include adding a high-capacity telephone system, doubling phone lines to 96, and hiring 45 new customer-service representatives to reduce call wait times and improve customer service, according to the state.

The Washington State Department of Transportation also asked customers once again to wait before signing up online:

WSDOT encourages customers to wait until next week to sign up for Good To Go! accounts. Existing customers who use the auto-replenish feature can be assured their accounts are functioning and will not run out of funds. Customers whose account balances are low or in the negative and do not use auto-replenish should contact customer service at 1-866-936-8246. Please be advised that call volumes are still high at this time. The best times to call are from 7 to 9 a.m. and 6 to 7 p.m. Customers who are unable to get through to a customer service representative should send an e-mail to goodtogo@wsdot.wa.gov.

-- Information from the Washington State Department of Transportation


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