Everyone likes free rides, but like all good things, they have to come to an end.

Starting next Thursday, July 16, tolls will be imposed on all motorized traffic crossing the $800 million Golden Ears Bridge.

For the more than 12,000 vehicle owners who have already ordered QuickPass transponders, the cost will be $2.75 for passenger vehicles, for each crossing of the bridge, which is one kilometre long.

The transponder automatically transmits licence plate data and ensures the vehicle will receive the maximum toll discount.

Those who don’t wish to pay the $1 per month transponder rental can register their licence plate number with the company collecting the tolls. They will then pay $3.30 per crossing. To register or rent a transponder, see www.quickpasstolling.ca, or call 604-460-5050.

Ridership on the new bus route No. 595, which began on June 22 connecting Langley City centre with Haney Place Mall, is expected to increase once the tolls go into effect.

That will likely impact vehicle traffic. In the first week following the bridge opening, an average of 47,000 vehicles drove on the bridge every day, well above the 30,000 daily average that TransLink expects for the first year of operation.

“The fact that the highest daily usage was found on the weekend, when we recorded 52,000 on each day, tells us the bridge is a popular attraction for non-commuter trips, as people start to discover the recreational and shopping opportunities that the bridge provides,” TransLink vice-president Fred Cummings said last week.

“We’ll start to see a truer picture of traffic patterns in the week following July 16, when the tolls kick in, and then following Labour Day, when workers and students return from summer holidays,” Cummings said.

The daily average vehicle traffic using the Albion Ferry, which shuts down July 31, has plunged 46 per cent.

The tolls, with lower amounts shown for vehicles with transponders, are:

$2.75 to $3.90 for cars;

$5.55 to $6.55 for small trucks, cars towing trailers, RVs and buses;

$8.30 to $9.40 for heavy trucks;

$1.40 to $2.50 for motorcycles.

Exempt from the tolls are bicycles, pedestrians, emergency vehicles, TransLink buses, transit support vehicles and bridge maintenance vehicles.

ICBC will refuse to issue a driver’s licence, vehicle licence and insurance if a person owes TransLink an excessive toll debt.