BEDFORD, N.H. (AP) – State police are cracking down on drivers who don’t pay highway tolls.

Troopers and toll collectors are cooperating in the crackdown, which recently focussed on the Bedford tolls along the Everett Turnpike.

The fine for evading tolls anywhere in the state is $144 dollars, but because of confusion about where to send the money, drivers ticketed at the Bedford toll plaza will now be required to appear in Merrimack District Court.

The state gets about $70 million from tolls each year. State officials estimate they lose another $1.5 million to toll evasion.