The Southern Connector, which opened Feb. 27 after decades of planning, makes it easier for commuters to get to and from points south of Greenville. Motorists who live in suburbs at either end of the road in the Golden Strip or Powdersville should find it especially convenient. But the convenience comes at a price. The Connector is South Carolina's second toll road, after the Cross-Island Parkway on Hilton Head Island. Vehicles with more than two axles pay more.
Motorists have two options for paying tolls.
They can pay in the traditional manner by slowing down at a tollbooth to drop money in a bin or hand it to an attendant. Or, if they want to cruise past toll plazas at 45 mph, they can get a Palmetto Pass. That's a special device that allows them to pay electronically. The device, called a transponder, attaches to a windshield visor or in the case of cars with metallic treatments on their windshields to a license plate. As a motorist drives through a toll plaza, the toll charge is automatically deducted from a pre-established account.