New tolls, gas tax to be discussed as ways to fund Rt. 53 extension

A 4-cent-per-gallon gas tax, a new toll plaza, and a special district spanning multiple jurisdictions are among the suggestions of a draft report to be considered Tuesday by the Route 53/120 finance committee.

The panel, tasked with determining whether a Route 53/120 extension was feasible and if so, how it could be funded, will meet from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Lake County Central Permit Facility, 500 W. Winchester Road, Libertyville.

Tuesday's discussion comes at a key juncture regarding the proposal for the 25-mile improvement north from Lake-Cook Road to Route 120 and on Route 120 from roughly Route 12 on the west to the Tri-State Tollway on the east, including a new bypass from Wilson Road to Almond Road.

The project is proposed as a four-lane, 45 mph, limited access boulevard and is intended to minimize environmental impacts and spark economic development. The estimated cost is $2.35 billion to $2.65 billion.

Comprised of representatives from a variety of communities, environmental and planning groups, the finance committee and its subgroups have met nearly two dozen times since it was formed in October 2013 with the goal of making a funding recommendation to the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority. Tolls and other funding suggestions are expected to generate $745 million to $993 million to fund the project, which still leaves a gap of $1.36 billion to $1.91 billion.

Tuesday's meeting will be for discussion of the recommendations, which will then be taken to various village boards and other entities for feedback before being finalized.

Funding recommendations include:

•A "sustainable transportation fund" to use 25 percent of new property taxes on new nonresidential development within a mile of the proposed road corridor and within two miles of interchanges. The money would be committed to an Environmental Restoration and Stewardship fund.

•Four-cent-per-gallon Lake County gas tax to be split between the project and other transportation needs.

•Congestion and index pricing of tolls as a test program and a new mainline toll plaza near Lake-Cook Road and revisions at Waukegan plaza and other locations.

The recommendations also call for a "significant contribution" from the state to include dedicating existing land it already has acquired for the project and completing all future needed land acquisition.

The draft recommendations also call for the tollway authority to identify Route 53 as its next top priority for new projects.