Motorists driving the full length of the North-South Highway between Caymanas and Ocho Rios could soon pay $5,220 for a round trip, under proposed new toll rates published by the Ministry of Energy, Transport and Telecommunications, according to the Jamaica Observer.
The proposal would raise the Class 1 toll to $2,610 each way, up $115, or roughly 4.6 percent, from the current $2,495. Class 2 vehicles would pay $5,220 one way; Class 3 vehicles, including larger trucks, would pay $7,830 each way, pushing their round trip to $15,660. Motorcycles and other Class 4 vehicles would pay $1,305 each way. Shorter sections carry proportionally lower proposed rates: $2,280 between Angels and Ocho Rios, $1,575 between Linstead and Ocho Rios, and $945 between Unity Valley and Ocho Rios.
The increase follows the annual adjustment mechanism built into the concession agreement between Jamaica North South Highway Company Limited and the state-owned National Road Operating and Constructing Company, which allows the operator to apply each year for a tariff adjustment. The ministry has not announced an implementation date, and the published figures are proposed maximums rather than confirmed final rates. Members of the public had five days from the notices publication to submit objections to the Toll Authority.
For commuters who use the highway regularly rather than occasionally, a 4.6 percent annual increase compounds meaningfully over a working year, and the toll now sits as a real, recurring line item in the cost of living in parishes the highway connects to Kingston and the north coast, on top of fuel, insurance and vehicle maintenance costs that have also been climbing.
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