Tesla store dodged $34,000 in tolls, lawsuit claims

A Tesla store in Colorado has racked up more than $34,000 in unpaid tolls, according to a lawsuit filed against the electric vehicle maker.

Northwest Parkway LLC, a private group that operates a nine-mile toll road outside Denver, says it's owed that money for vehicles with license plates registered by the Tesla store in Littleton. Tolls on the highway range from $1.70 to $5.20 for two-axle vehicles, meaning Tesla is accused of skipping out on tolls as many as 20,000 times, BizWest reported last week.

It's not clear how far back the alleged delinquencies go. The Northwest Parkway, which forms a portion of the beltway around Denver, opened in 2003 and started collecting tolls in 2004.

"The failure to pay Go-Pass toll bills on time is a breach of the contract for use of the Northwest Parkway and subjects defendant Tesla Inc. to additional fees and legal action," the toll road operator said in its lawsuit filed Sept. 23 in Broomfield County District Court.

Tesla, which disbanded its media relations department several years ago, didn't respond to requests for comment from BizWest.

The report said Tesla is not the only business run by Elon Musk being accused of nonpayment in Colorado courts. A judge in June approved evicting X Corp. — the Musk-owned social media site formerly called Twitter — from one office in Boulder, and a notice posted by the landlord of another X Corp. office said it was nearly $179,000 behind on rent.

A Boulder cleaning company sued X Corp. in May, saying it had nearly $100,000 in unpaid bills.