How to handle tolls in your rental car, made easy and stress-free.
Driving in a new Australian city for the first time? You will almost certainly encounter toll roads, especially around Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. For a first-timer or visitor, these can be confusing. How do you pay? Do you need to buy a pass? What happens if you miss a toll?
At Alpha Car Hire, we’ve made this process as simple as possible. You don’t need to take any action—it’s all automated for your convenience.
The Simple Answer: It’s All Handled for You
You don’t need to buy a separate e-Tag, set up an account, or stop to pay at a booth (in fact, you can’t—most toll roads are fully electronic).
Our vehicles are fitted with an electronic toll tag (e-Tag).
You can drive on any toll road in Australia, and the tag will automatically register your trip. We then simply on-charge the standard toll cost to the card you provided for your rental. It’s that easy.
How Our Toll System Works: The 3-Step Process
1. Your Vehicle is Equipped
Almost every car hire in our fleet is pre-fitted with an e-Tag. This tag is linked to our central account, so you’re ready to go from the moment you pick up your car. If your rental vehicle is not fitted with one, they are still registered to our tolling account and being recorded using vehicle matching on the toll cameras.
2. You Drive on Any Toll Road
Whether you’re using the tollways to get out of the city faster from our car hire Sydney Airport branch, crossing the Gateway Bridge with your car hire from Brisbane Airport, or navigating Melbourne’s CityLink, you just drive through. The tag will beep, and the toll is registered to your vehicle.
3. We Provide Transparent Billing
A few days after your rental ends, our system receives the toll information. We then bill the exact toll charges to your nominated credit or debit card, along with a small processing fee. There are no surprise fines or hidden charges.
Key Things to Remember
- Do Not Use Your Own e-Tag: Please do not bring or use your personal e-Tag in our rental car. Our vehicle’s tag is already permanently installed, and using a second tag can cause “double-billing” errors that are difficult to resolve.
- Tolls are an Additional Charge: The cost of the tolls is not included in your standard rental rate. They are a separate, variable cost based on which roads you use, just like fuel.
- Stick to Sealed Surfaces: While you can use any toll road, remember that all our vehicles must be driven on sealed, paved surfaces only.
Toll Roads in Our Key Locations
- Driving in Sydney: Most of Sydney’s major motorways (like the M2, M4, M5, M7, Harbour Bridge, and Harbour Tunnel) are toll roads. A car rental in Sydney makes navigating the city much easier, and our e-Tag system makes it seamless.
- Driving in Melbourne: Melbourne’s main tollways are CityLink and EastLink. These are essential for quick travel from our Melbourne Airport car hire branch to the CBD or southeastern suburbs.
- Driving in Brisbane: Brisbane’s main toll roads include the Gateway Motorway (airport access), Clem Jones Tunnel (Clem7), and AirportLink.
Drive with Complete Peace of Mind
Our goal is to make your car rental experience simple. With our e-Tag system, you can forget about tolls and just focus on enjoying your drive.
If you have any questions about toll charges or your rental agreement, our friendly Car Hire Concierge team is always here to help.
