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In less than three months, nearly 17,000 western Pennsylvania motorists have started using the turnpike's E-ZPass program.

The new subscribers in the western portion of the state account for about 10 percent of the 171,000 E-ZPass users statewide, according to Kathy Liebler, a Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission spokeswoman.

"That's very good considering we really didn't start enrolling people until December," she said. "We're still trying to sell the program out here."

There are 12,643 E-ZPass account holders and 16,942 E-ZPass users in western Pennsylvania, Liebler said. An account holder can pay to have the automatic toll payment system installed in more than one vehicle.

Account holders prepay turnpike tolls, allowing them to drive nonstop through a designated E-ZPass lane at toll booths, at 5 mph, without having to use tickets or change. A device mounted near the vehicle's rear-view mirror automatically sends a signal that deducts the proper toll from the account.

There have been no complaints reported about the system to AAA West Penn, spokeswoman Bevi Norris said.

"We support it because it really is a convenience to the motorist," she said. "It's been a very positive addition."

The heaviest use of the system is in southeastern Pennsylvania, especially near Philadelphia, where the commission plans to add 21 more E-ZPass lanes.

"We knew it was more of a challenge in western Pennsylvania because a lot of people didn't know E-ZPass," Liebler said. "We're really setting the pace here and introducing the technology."

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