Toll Road IAVE Transponder

[Mainecoons]

Friend of mine bought an IAVE toll road transponder from a vendor while on a trip to PV.  It does NOT require a Mexican CC or bank account, he puts money on it at OXXO.  It is vehicle specific.  Any idea where this might be purchased locally?  I really like the idea of not having to fool with a bank and would want one for my car and another for my moto.

[jrod]

Bancomer on the plaza is where I got mine and refill it, but I understand you can top it off at Oxxos as well as some other locations. I also do not link to a credit card here to autofill it (like TX toll tags do) but from here to Laredo round trip is about $2200 so I refill before a trip. You can download the app so you can see your tolls and balance register on your smart phone. A few caveats: this does not work seamlessly like TX toll tags: some things to notice: you must slow to a full stop then inch up to the reader at the tolls (which, surprise! is rarely mounted in the same spot on two consecutive toll booths); the IAVE lanes vary from toll booth to toll booth (usually at the right side of the tolls, not always--this is Mexico, but you can use MULTIMODAL lanes also), you must remove or cover (I've heard tinfoil works) your TX tag or the weaker strength of the IAVE won't pick up your signal; if you use a radar fuzzbuster, you have to turn it off to not interfere with the IAVE signal), and not all MX tolls use the same IAVE system (it has changed twice since I've had the tag) but more and more are being converted to the IAVE brand, meaning that you still need to carry some cash in case the system/specific toll/transponders don't work. And, there's no discount for paying by tag, as the TX tag offers. But after about 2 years of use, we are getting used to the quirks and the last several times we've had 100% success. Last, your cash balance is only good for 6 months, according to the website, and although it has carried over for us I try to keep the after-trip balance low in case it does eat our balance. The app and online registration setup is a bit squirrely and not user-friendly; if you need help LMK and I will walk you through once you get your tag.

PS You are indeed permitted to move the tag from one vehicle to another (again, unlike the TX tag)...your vehicle ID is not stored anywhere.

[snowyela]

Would that be the Ajijic plaza?

15 minutes ago, jrod said:

Bancomer on the plaza is where I got mine

 

[Mainecoons]

Thanks for the great answer JRod.  However, how would the thing differentiate between a car and a moto?  The toll for motos is half that of cars.  Mainly I want it for the moto as paying tolls when on a bike in full gear is a real pain in the butt.

Can one also access the account information with a regular computer?  I am a dumb person with a dumb flip phone!

[jrod]

Maincoons, no idea how it tells one vehicle from another...but see no disadvantage to having separate tags. Yes, you can indeed access on your computer but you need to have your userid and password and tag number with you to logon to the site. I just checked, and you can include multiple tags on one account and can even reload separately from one credit card, so the system is set up for multiple accounts for one registered user.

 

Snowyela, yes, the Ajijic plaza but I'm sure all Bancomer branches can do this at the window for you. Just check your receipt to make sure your payment is listed to your transponder/tag number.