How does such a thing happen?
Back in September 2024, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority Board of Commissioners awarded a $1.7 billion E-ZPass services contract to a company named TransCore. The significance: Allegedly, the company’s leadership has ties to the Chinese Communist Party.
Even stranger: the winning company’s bid ($1.73 billion) was reportedly $250 million higher than that of the American-owned company ($1.479 billion) which had operated E-ZPass for the prior two decades.
The contract is raising alarms and concerns beyond New Jersey that China may be able to track Garden State commuters’ movements.
“This is a direct threat to both our national security and the privacy of millions of Americans,” Congressman Jeff Van Drew (R, NJ-02) told KYW Radio. “The CCP has repeatedly demonstrated its willingness to exploit foreign partnerships to advance its own strategic interests, often at the expense of U.S. security.”
Van Drew elaborated upon his concerns during a Fox News appearance:
China has its hooks into your E-ZPass… can’t imagine how that could end badly! pic.twitter.com/7R8ZvzQNXc
— Matt Rooney (@MattRooneyNJ) February 9, 2025
