Earlier this month, 16 Northern Virginia lawmakers joined commuters to express outrage over the cost of I-66’s new tolls, which open up the highway to solo drivers during rush hour. No one likes paying tolls, and short-term spikes have indeed been very costly — as high as $40 for the nine-mile trip from the Beltway to the Washington, D.C., line. But the change has actually worked as expected, allowing previous HOV drivers and new, toll-paying solo commuters to get to their destinations more quickly.

On balance, tolling I-66 is an improvement for Northern Virginia commuters. And there is at least one way we might be able to improve the new system.