Equestria Thruway System

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The Equestria Thruway System is a system of tolled highways that are interconnected. This massive project was made possible by the EMTA, as a foundation for the growth of Equestria. The Thruway system is a network made up by the main Thruway (E-84), which are supported by smaller highways that serve areas not served by the main Thruway. 

History

The idea of the Equestria Thruway system was the idea of Cipher, the Chaircolt of the Equestria Metropolitan Transportation Authority at the time.

In 2010, the EMTA drew up plans on how to execute such an ambitious plan. This included how to procure financing for the project. After much thought, the plan was finally presented to the EMTA Board of Directors in 2011. At first sight, the EMTA board was shocked at the plan. They mentioned that how would the EMTA would handle the maintenance and they have limited knowledge on road design.

The ponies in Manehatten were also quite unsure how to react at the plan, especially when they have complaints on the current state of transportation in the city. After a series of hearings, including a hearing in Ponyville, in which protestors belittled the EMTA board for building the monster of a project and destroying the landscape of Equestria. The full EMTA board took a vote on November 15th, 2011, which resulted in the project being approved and that construction could start immediately.

Over the serval months, parts of the Thruway would open to the public, in during which, tolls would not be collected until the Thruway was completed. The Main Thruway (E-84) was completed in March, with the other sub highways being completed in August of 2012. The entire network was completed on August 7th, 2012, coincidently, it was Cipher's birthday.

Signage

Template Shield

A highway that is part of the network can be easily identified with the Equestria shield design as shown here. A typical sign design is a shield like sign, with red on the top, and a blue background. The lettering is always in white, with the word Equestria on top (However, there are exceptions). This is where the E in most of the highway numbers comes from. In the middle, there is always the name of the highway and the bottom is where the number goes.

The former standard design included the destination, however, in 2013, the Equestria Thruway Authority decided to remove and replace it with the name of instead. The reason was given that most signs now included the direction the road goes, so it would have been redundant.

Most highways follow this design with the exception of three highways, the Hugh L. Carey Turnpike (E-7), the Taconic Skyway (P-185) and the Ponyville Parkway.

Equestria Thruway (E-84)

Equestria-84 is the backbone of the entire system

The Equestria Thruway is the main highway that reaches all four corners of Equestria, Manehatten, Baltamare, Vanhoover and Las Pegasus. This is the largest highway of the entire network and is the backbone of the system. E-84 is the only highway that can go North to South and East to West all under one route. As defined by the EMTA, the Equestria Thruway begins and terminates at the Princess Celestia Bridge in Manehatten, in which the Thruway continues as the Major Deegan Expressway towards the City. 

The new Thruway Shield.

The design of E-84 is a 5 lane highway, with 4 lanes available for the use by the public and the left lane is reserved for Thruway Police and Authorized personnel.

Equestria-84 connects with the other smaller highways at different points.

Connections

E-84 connects with

• The Ponyville Parkway at Fillydelphia.
• The Hugh L. Carey Turnpike and Governor Pataki Turnpike at the Cloudsdale Interchange
• Princess Luna Expressway (E-295) at Vanhoover
• Appleloosa Byway (E-287 & E-87) at Appleloosa
• Princess Twilight Sparkle Expressway (E-476) at Fillydelphia

Ponyville Parkway

Ponyville Parkway

The Ponyville Parkway (Older Shield Signs have it as Pony Ville Parkway) is a 3 lane highway with two lanes for use by the public. Out of the entire system, the Ponyville Parkway is the smallest one and the most narrow and the only one to lack shoulders. The Parkway was designed to be a quick and fast connection from Fillydelpha to Ponyville for tourists or just ponies who want to explore the rest of Equestria. 

This road in terms of signage, has a different layout, since it is not numbered, and unable to accommodate larger wagons, which resulted in a parkway sign. The parkway sign lets ponies know that the road is only for passengers ponies and not for commercial wagons.

The Parkway opened on March 28th 2012, around the same time the Equestria Thruway was completed. The Ponyville Parkway is the oldest tributeary highway in the entire system. 

However, one of the problems with this road, as it was quickly designed and with little knowledge on how to design a road, led it to be narrow and dangerous to use. Most overpasses are very low to the ground, and the curves are extremely dangerous at night. The Ponyville Parkway is the most cricized for its awkard design and rushed nature. 

Another problem that when it rains really heavily, the road tends to flood easily, causing the highway to close. The Equestria Thruway Authority is working on a solution, but blames the near by Saw Mill River for the constant flooding.

Hugh L. Carey Turnpike (E-7)

The Hugh L. Carey Turnpike (Formally the Canterlot Turnpike) is a 5 lane highway with 4 lanes available for use. It carries traffic from Ponyville at the Ponyville Interchange to the Canterlot and the Cloudsdale Interchange. The highway follows a North-South direction, it was the next highway to be built after the Ponyville Parkway.

E-7 (Credit TwinsMetsFan on Wikipedia)

Originally, the Turnpike would have carried traffic from Ponyville, to Canterlot and than towards Manehatten. However, this plan was scrapped after it would have been redundant as the Thruway already carries Traffic to Manehatten, as a result, the road was shifted in a North-South pattern. This resulted in the road being built from Ponyville to Canterlot. After construction of the main road was complete, the designers saw the potential for expansion and a way to connect to E-678, which be prove as an important link to the Crystal Empire. Thus, construction continued northward to form the Cloudsdale Interchange. This continuation in construction can easily be spotted right after Canterlot, in which, the road surfaces changes from cement-gravel to pavement, as this would be a quicker way to build towards E-678.

The Turnpike opened towards the end of April, the road was known as the Canterlot Turnpike, but the EMTA board decided to rename it the Hugh L. Carey Turnpike in honor of their designer, Hugh L. Carey. 

The Hugh L. Carey Turnpike has an interesting feature, even though it is E-7, it is not branded as the typical Equestria highway sign, instead it features the 7 on a white sign, similar to the Ponyville Parkway sign.

Princess Luna Expressway (E-295)

The Luna Expressway (Legally named as the Princess Luna Expressway) is a 5 lane highway with 4 lanes available for use by the public each way. This route begins at the Ponyville Interchange and it terminates at Vanhoover when it intersects the Equestria Thruway.

E-295 is an important link between the west coast of Equestria with central Equestria as it is the fastest way to get there.

However, construction of this route was controversial as many ponies objected the digging through the mountains to create tunnels. The environmentalists said that the creation of the tunnel ruined the pristine views of the Unicorn Range and be it replaced with a road.

The Luna Expressway

The EMTA held a series of public hearings in Vanhoover to address their concerns, the Board of Directors were met by protestors, in which it turned into a shouting match. The EMTA Police was called in to send the protestors home, the EMTA voted in favor of the highway, in a 5-2 decision.

This was not the end of the E-295 nightmare, this highway was the most costly out of the entire Thruway System, totaling over $35,000,000 bits when the road was set and done. The cost overruns was caused by digging through the tunnels and overtime that was incurred during the tunneling process. As a result, the tolls are higher than other highways.

Governor Pataki Turnpike (E-678)

E-678 Shield.

The Pataki Turnpike is the only highway that connects the main land Equestria with the Crystal Empire. It is a highway with 5 lanes each direction and with 4 lanes for public use. The road begins from the Cloudsdale Interchange, and heads north to the Crystal Empire.

Governor George Pataki Turnpike Shield

The warning given before E-678.

Equestria-678 has been characterized as one of the most dangerous roads of all of the Thruway System. It is dangerous due to the constant and unexpected blizzards that occur every so often. Many of these blizzards occur with no warning and can cause the road to be slippery and dangerous to users.

For this reason, the Thruway Authority created a division to specifically handle the snow removal and to insure the safety of ponies using E-678. When a snow storm hits the highway, the Snow Removal Division responds by clearing the roads and helping ponies who may be in need of assistance. To help ponies who may get stuck or get caught unexpectedly in a blizzard, the Thruway Authority built shelters to house ponies away from the storm until it is safe to travel again.

As one of the newest road of the entire system, it has incorporated all the features that the designers learned over the process of building the network. Each direction is separated by a large median, the shoulders are wide enough to handle ponies who need to get off the road and that the road surface is smooth, enabling for better traction.

the EMTA dedication to the Governor.

On December 29th, E-678 was dedicated to former Governor George E. Pataki, as a result, it is now called the Governor Pataki Turnpike.

Appleloosa Byway (E-287 & E-87)

The sign to let drivers know that the Appleloosa Byway has begun.

The Appleloosa Byway is a highway that connects Ponyville and Appleloosa, serving as an connect from Central Equestria to the southern region of Equestria. However, the Appleloosa byway does not actually go through Appleloosa, it terminates to the west of Appleloosa, at Ghastly Gorge. It was designed to end at Ghastly Gorge due to the fact that it can easily curve right on to the Thruway, and it is making use of existing cutways of the woods, while avoiding the EverFree Forest.

It is a 4 lane highway with 3 lanes for use by the public. The Appleloosa Byway is interesting in terms of how the road is numbered, instead of the standard one 

number road, this road has been given two numbers, 287 and 87. The reason that it got two numbers can be dated back to the early design of the system, in which a road would branch off the Byway and continue straight to Manehatten, and it would be E-87. However, due to community opposition to more highways through Ponyville and the difficulty in gripping with the Everfree Forest led to the cancellation of E-87. However, E-87 was not removed from the Appleloosa portion was because signs were already in place and it would cost more bits to remove the number, so it was kept instead. This problem would later be fixed with the annoucement of the Bruckner Thruway, as it will carry E-87 from the Byway and continue it to Manehatten. 

Taconic Skyway (P-185)

Taconic Skyway

Taconic Skyway Shield

The Taconic Skyway (P-185) is a special route that is designed in mind for the Pegasi Ponies that are coming from or going to Cloudsdale via the Thruway System. This road is not actually physical, meaning, that Unicorns and Earth Ponies may not access the highway.

The exit sign for P-185 from the Thruway

As a result of the highway not being accessible to every pony, there is no toll charge on the Taconic Skyway. It was only meant as a safe way to exit the Thruway and have a direct route to Cloudsdale without interfering with the rest of the highway system. The route is named after the Taconic mountain range in the suburbs of Manehatten.

Another feature to indicate that it is not part of the entire thruway system is the use of the letter P instead of E. The P stand for Pegasi, so in legal terms, the Taconic Skyway is Pegasi-185.

The Bruckner Thruway (E-487) & (E-87)

The New Shield for the Bruckner Thruway.

The Bruckner Thruway (E-487) is one of the newest highway to be added to the ever growing Thruway System. This highway will continue the failed E-87 project. This road will branch off the Appleloosa Byway just before the Ponyville interchange. E-487 will go north of Ponyville, in which will connect with the Ponyville Parkway and the T. Sparkle Expressway. From there on out, it will bypass Fillydelpha and continue straight to Manehatten. In Manehatten, it will be connected to the new Bruckner bridge.

The Bruckner Thruway is a 4 lane highway with 3 lanes to use to the general public. 

E-487 will also be designated with E-87, to make the Appleloosa Byway and Bruckner Thruway as one continuous highway.  

Construction will be completed some time in 2013, maybe into 2014.

The new Bruckner Bridge which will carry E-487.

As mentioned before, the Bruckner Thruway will connect to a new bridge in Midtown Manehatten. This was in the works to alievate traffic jams that occur often at the other bridges and tunnels. Though there was intial opposition to the bridge and Thruway, the EMTA voted in favor 6-1 vote. 

Princess Twilight Sparkle Expressway (E-476)

E-476 is a highway that connects Fillydelphia to Canterlot, with a connection to the Hugh L Carey Turnpike. This route will be the solution to the design flaws of the orignal Ponyville Parkway. E-476 will able to handle commercial traffic, it won't flood and incorporates the lastest highway standards that are deployed through out the rest of the Thruway system. The incorperation of the highway standards will allow E-476 to have higher speeds while maintaining safety. It should be clear that E-476 is not intended as a replacement for the Ponyville Parkway, but as supplementing and fixing the shortcomings of said road.

The Twilight Shield

The road has 5 lanes in both directions with 4 lanes being open to public use. E-476 is connected with the Bruckner Thruway, near Ponyville and with to the Hugh L. Carey Turnpike (E-7) at Canterlot. In Fillydelphia, it is connected to the main Equestria Thruway (E-84) The idea for the E-476 was brought to the attention of the Equestria Thruway Authority by Paul Miller IV (  pfmiv) and it is in the planning stages with full board and public meetings

E-476 officially opened on June 25th, finished ahead of schedule.

Cancelled Highways

E-95 & E-78

The sign for the cancelled E-95

The sign for the cancelled E-78

Both E-95 and E-78 were purposed highways that would have served Vanhoover and Manehatten to the Crystal Empire. The idea behind this road that it would serve as a faster route to the empire from both coasts of Equestria.

The idea behind it was to reduce the traffic load from the Governor Pataki Turnpike and, thus, reducing costs of maintaining E-678.

Cross Empire Parkway

Cross Empire Parkway

The Cross Empire Parkway (or Cross Empire PWKY) would have been a route in between the Cloudsdale Interchange and The Crystal Empire. This road would have alloedw E-678, E-78 and E-95 to be all interconnected to passenger wagons only. The Cross Empire Parkway was meant as a detour if one of the main roads is shut down due to a blizzard, as that is a common problem on any road north of the Cloudsdale Interchange. It would have been a 3 lane road each way.

All three roads were cancelled by the EMTA. The EMTA cited "continuing improvements" were needed to the existing roadways before they could proceed with any additional new routes.

Tolling System

The Thruway Network is a closed tolling system. In which means a pony is charged for the certain distance they use the Thruway or highway.

In other words, once a pony enters the highway network, either their starting location will be marked by their ThruPass Transponder, or if they are paying in bits, they will pick up paper ticket. Along the way, there may be tolls one must also pay in order to continue, and once the pony exits the highway, they will be charged for the distance traveled, even if a pony exits one highway for another. This is to insure that tolls are equally charged to everybody, the more miles using the Thruway, the more in tolls you will be calculated.

Due to EMTA Bridges and Tunnels being a separate agency that is responsible for Manehatten Bridges and Tunnels, a separate toll charge is required.

Equestria Thru-Pass Logo

However, owners of the ThruPass Transponders are automatically given a 15% discount off regular cash prices. The benefit is to the pony is that they save money on the highway while skipping the cash lines. These saving can add up even more if a pony signs up for a contract, these ponies can save an additional 10% for meeting certain requirements, such as minimum times traveling the Thruway, which is great for commuters.

A prototype Transponder with the experimental name of the system. (Dates back to 2010)

List of Tolls

The following is a list of tolls that are to be expected when using the Thruway System. All prices DO NOT include Bridge and Tunnel tolls along the way. (I.E. The Gastly Gorge Bridge or Princess Celestia Bridge in Manehatten)

• ThruPass Prices are not listed as they can range differently due to contract plans and so on
• Prices are the same on the opposite direction (Ex. If the price is listed from Manehatten to one place, it is the same from that place to Manehatten)
• Prices can differ if you enter in a different point of the road
• This list ONLY is to give a general idea what can be expected. The EMTA and Thruway Authority is NOT responsible for errors
• When transferring from one highway to another highway, there is a $5 bit Highway Transfer Fee. (Fee is not applied to users of ThruPass)
• No toll on the Taconic Skyway (P-185)

Equestria Thruway (E-84)

• Prices are listed from Manehatten

From Manehatten --> West --> South

• Manehatten to Cloudsdale Interchange (E-7 & E-678): $17.50
• Manehatten to Vanhoover: $25.75
• Manehatten to Las Pegasus $38.25

Manehatten---> South ---> West

• Manehatten to Fillydelphia: $8.25
• Manehatten to Baltimare: $13.50
• Manehatten to Dodge City: $19.50
• Manehatten to Appleloosa: $24.00
• Manehatten to Appleloosa Junction (Connection to Appleloosa Byway): $26.50

Ponyville Parkway

From Fillydelphia to Ponyville Interchange (Westbound)

• Fillydelphia to Bruckner Thruway (E-487)/T. Sparkle Expressway (E-476): $5
• Fillydelphia to Ponyville: $6.25
• Fillydelphia to Ponyville Interchange (Connection to E-7, E-287, E-295): $8

Appleloosa Byway (E-287 & E-87)

From Appleloosa Junction (JCT) to Ponyville Interchange (Northbound)

• Appleloosa JCT to Ponyville: $8
• Appleloosa JCT to Bruckner Thruway (E-487): $8.50
• Appleloosa JCT to Ponyville Interchange: $9

Hugh L. Carey Turnpike (E-7)

From Ponyville Interchange (PVI) to Cloudsdale Interchange (Northbound)

• PVI to Canterlot: $4.25
• PVI to T. Sparkle Expressway (E-476): $5
• PVI to Cloudsdale Interchange: $7.50

Princess Luna Expressway (E-295)

From Vanhoover to Ponyville Interchange (Eastbound)

• Vanhoover to Ponyville Interchange: $15

Governor Pataki Turnpike (E-678)

From Cloudsdale Interchange to Crystal Empire (Northbound)

• Cloudsdale Interchange to Crystal Empire: $18.00

Bruckner Thruway (E-487)

From Appleloosa Byway (ALBW) to Manehatten (Eastbound)

• ALBW to Ponyville Parkway/T. Sparkle Expressway: $3.75
• ALBW to Manehatten: $8.00 + Tolls at Bruckner Bridge.

P. T. Sparkle Expressway (E-476)

From Hugh L. Carey Turnpike (HLC) to Fillydelphia

• HLC to Canterlot: $1
• HLC to Ponyville Parkway/Bruckner Thruway (E-487): $6.50
• HLC to Fillydelphia: $11.00
• HLC to Equestria Thruway (E-84): $11.50

Maintenance

Maintenance of the Thruway depends on what jurisdiction it falls under. Inside Manehatten, the maintenance of the Thruway falls under the responsibility of the EMTA Bridges and Tunnel Authority.

The Sign for the ETA

Outside Manehatten, the responsibility falls to the Equestria Thruway Authority, which its job is to Maintain the highway in good working order, fixing anything broken, making sure the bridges and overpasses are safe to use. Last to not least, remove snow on roads in order to make it passable for ponies to use.

Wagon & Traffic Law Enforcement

Main article: Wagon & Traffic Laws (W&TL)

To enforce safety and traffic laws of the Thruway System falls under the direction of the Thruway Police. However, this duty is delegated to the EMTA Police once the Thruway enters Manehatten.

Both Police Departments have a heavy handed task of patrolling every road in the network.

The Police does the following the following...

• Enforce Speed Limits
• Spacial Distance between Ponies
• Commercial Restrictions on the Parkways
• Making sure Equestria Thruway Authority workers can work on the road safely.
• Help Ponies who may need assistance
• Arrest Ponies who may commit crimes on the Thruway
• Arrest Ponies who evade paying tolls

The Thruway Police has a zero tolerance for speeding in a Work Zone, they are authorized to ban any pony who has been convicted of two work zone speeding tickets, and they may suspend any pony from the Thruway if they are a perceived danger to the traveling public.

The Thruway Police has a special division, in which uses Griffons to enforce Speed Limits in the air. Thruway Police Unicorns have been trained on how to use radar to calculate the velocity of a pony, in which, can be used at trial.

Their goal is to provide and maintain a safe travel environment for both the public and road crews.