Rate increases, express lanes, new highways considered in tollway’s latest strategic plan

Toll increases are contemplated in a refreshed Illinois tollway strategic plan that also envisions extending existing highways or constructing new ones.

Board directors on Monday approved a 20-year road map that intertwines road building and repairs with “innovation, equity and sustainability.”

It’s a precursor to a multiyear capital plan, which is being reviewed by the governor’s office and should be released in the coming months.

The plan “defines the broad priorities that will shape our work in the years ahead,” Executive Director Cassaundra Rouse said.

“It serves as a framework that guides how we invest in infrastructure, how we deliver customer service and how we stay focused on long-term economic impact.”

Strategic Planning Committee Chair Scott Paddock noted, “I don’t know whether we could have embarked on a new capital plan without updating the (2010) strategic plan.”

Initiatives include identifying and delivering “extensions to existing highways and new highways,” and increasing interchange access points.

The document also endorses identifying “opportunities for express lanes through conversion of existing lanes or development of new lanes.”

Notably, there is also a recommendation to “regularly update toll rates and explore dynamic pricing,” which can involve charging more at rush hour and less at off-peak times.

“I believe we haven’t had a passenger toll increase in 12 years,” said Paddock, a tollway director. “I don’t know of any other industry you can point to that can say ‘We haven’t raised prices in 12 years.’”

“I hope that when there is a toll increase — there’s an understanding this is to continue to innovate, to continue to promote connectivity, to continue to drive economic impact,” he added.

Any toll increase would require a board vote. A dynamic pricing option would be 10 to 15 years into the future, Rouse said.

Another strategic goal is to modernize legacy toll plazas by removing outdated barriers, for example, and to reduce bottlenecks like the I-355 interchange with I-88.

Other initiatives include:

• Adding amenities to oases.

• Developing technology to prevent near-misses.

• Modernizing and expanding smart corridors with digital signs.

• Reducing pollution from greenhouse gas emissions and stormwater runoff.

• Promoting natural habitats and multiuse trails adjacent to toll roads.

The plan will help both tollway users and nonusers, officials said, citing jobs resulting from industrial and commercial development along corridors like I-355.

“This is … an investment that is going to benefit this entire state,” Paddock said. “The economic piece is so critical to telling our story.”

The tollway began updating the strategic plan in 2023.

“I’m really proud of the process,” Paddock said. “We solicited input from so many stakeholders across all industry segments.”

The tollway’s Move Illinois capital plan ends in 2027. The interim Bridging the Future building plan stretches from 2025 through 2031.