The sign-off from Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s board came despite overwhelming online comment opposition.
By Ethan Soifer | Illinois Policy Institute
Despite overwhelming online public opposition, Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Illinois Tollway board unanimously approved a proposal Wednesday to hike tolls 57% for passenger vehicles and 30% for commercial vehicles.
The increases take effect Jan. 1.
The measure will increase tolls by about 45 cents each for passengers to an average of $1.24 per toll, costing a commuter who passes through two tolls a day for 50 weeks $225 more in 2027. Commercial vehicle tolls will increase 30%, which could increase the price of consumer goods transported through Northern Illinois.
Worse, starting in 2029, automatic inflation-linked increases would be imposed every two years without additional board approval. The Illinois Policy Institute projects that passenger toll prices will triple from current levels by 2055.
The proposal was approved 8-0 to fund a new $26.5 billion, 15-year capital plan, but the automatic toll hikes will continue beyond the timeline of the proposed projects.
More here.
Of course, this Board is bought and paid for by the billionaire Comrade Toilets. Keep voting for these IL Dems and expect to keep getting taxed to death. I wonder how tollway users feel about paying for the CTA’s incompetence and outright corruption???
Illinois Speaker Chris Welch stated that the Illinois Tollway hike was the “price that needed to be paid” to secure labor union support for the Chicago-area mass transit bailout. He explained that unions required a visible benefit to justify agreeing to divert nearly $1 billion a year from the Road Fund to Chicago mass transit, noting it was “important… that they can point to something that will help keep working people working and keep roads getting repaired.” Speaker Welch characterized the 45-cent increase on passenger vehicles and 30% hike for commercial vehicles as a “very minimal fee” and “the price… to secure labor support.” Critics, including the Americans for Prosperity and Illinois Policy Institute, labeled the move “Springfield cronyism,” asserting the hikes were a political reward for unions rather than a necessary infrastructure expense.