Southern Connector Switches to Sticker Tag Style Palmetto Pass

The Southern Connector is switching to a new “sticker tag” transponder in an effort to reduce the number of replacement transponders it issues and provide an environmentally responsible method for disposing of those transponders once they are taken out of service.

The new sticker tag Palmetto Pass replaces the long-used white hard case transponder box that allows users faster access at toll plazas along the Southern Connector, said Pete Femia, the road’s general manager.

One of the primary reasons the hard case transponder will be replaced is the limited battery life of the hard case transponder, Femia said. The old transponder battery wore down after seven to eight years. The new sticker tag Palmetto Pass has no internal battery and will last much, much longer.

In addition, the sticker tags are much smaller and take up only a small space on the windshield of the vehicle he said.  In the future, these sticker tags will make Palmetto Passes interoperable with toll roads in other states.

Femia said the vast majority of the hard-case Palmetto Passes have been replaced, but people who have not made the change yet can call 1-866-PALPASS (725-7277) or go to the Southern Connector’s main office located at the West Toll Plaza, 3050 Southern Connector, Piedmont, S.C.  All new account holders will be issued sticker tags unless they also use the Cross Island Parkway in Hilton Head, S.C.