The biggest toll bills left unpaid on the Port Mann and Golden Ears bridges number in the tens of thousands of dollars, according to a list obtained by CTV News.

The businesses, a charity, and even two government agencies each had their reasons for not paying those eye-popping bills, from not receiving a bill to prioritizing eating.

“Well, you eat first, right?” said Mark Morelli, the sole proprietor of Canadian Precision Machine Works, which racked up a bill of $60,535.04 – the highest amount TransLink says is owed on the Golden Ears Bridge.

A day later, Morelli said he’d contacted Quickpass, which collects tolls for the crossing, saying he’d work something out.

Charging tolls on the Port Mann and the Golden Ears bridges stopped last September, but there are still huge outstanding amounts to collect.

Some $15 million remains to be collected on the Port Mann Bridge, according to the Ministry of Transportation.

And starting next Friday, TransLink says it’s going to send the remaining $2 million to collections agency ARO. On July 10, Quickpass will no longer collect payments, and the only way to pay will be through that collections agency.

“Drivers used a service that costs money and it needs to be paid for,” said spokesperson Jill Drews. “Everyone else paid their bills and that’s why we’re pursuing the rest.”

CTV News asked for a list of the biggest debtors through B.C.’s Freedom of Information Act from the operators of both formerly tolled bridges.

TransLink didn’t provide any information about personal accounts, but most of the top ten were businesses, which B.C. rules say don’t have the same privacy protections.

Meanwhile, two out of the top ten debtors on the Port Mann Bridge were government agencies – but neither bridge operator T.I. Corp nor the Ministry of Transportation were willing to say who.

CTV News appealed through B.C.’s Information and Privacy Commissioner, which is considering whether to force T.I. Corp to name those government agencies.

The fact this is even a question is a major problem for government transparency, said Mike Larsen of the Freedom of Information and Privacy Association.

“You’ve heard of following the money. This is a classic case follow the money,” Larsen told CTV News. “That’s what the Freedom of Information Act is for. You would expect financial information like this to simply be made available.”

The third-highest identifiable bill, at $31,173.47, belonged to National Diabetes Trustee Corp., whose trucks pick up donated clothing and sells it to raise money for the charity Diabetes Canada.

The charity hadn’t received a bill when CTV News called on Tuesday, possibly because it had moved offices, said Scott Ebenhardt, the director of the National Diabetes Trust.

“It was a surprise to us as well,” Ebenhardt said from Toronto. “Absolutely, we are going to pay anything we owe.”

Second on the list was Catalina Pool Spa Ltd, which used to operate a business in Maple Ridge. TransLink’s list maintains it owes $50,900.25.

CTV News tracked down former principal Benito Testini at his home in Surrey. He said he declared bankruptcy, and the company no longer exists.

“I ended up going personally bankrupt in 2012 and I washed my hands of this,” Testini said.

The top three debtors on the Port Mann Bridge, according to T.I. Corp, owe $70,393, $58,952, and $53,152.

TransLink says it’s collected some $319 million since tolling started in 2009. Last year, $23 million was owed. The agency estimated around $13 million may not be collectable, bringing the total owed to about $10 million.

TransLink has collected $4 million to date in 2018, and identified a further $4 million it may not be able to collect.