Tollway gas stations close briefly for Big Gulp move

Motorists looking for a Slurpee fix on the Illinois tollway should get their hearts’ desire soon.

The tollway closed its gas stations and convenience shops at the Des Plaines, O’Hare and Chicago Southland Lincoln oases to allow for their conversion to 7-Eleven stores at midnight Wednesday. Those outlets will reopen between 8 a.m. and midafternoon today.

The agency upgraded fuel stations and convenience shops at the Belvidere, DeKalb, Hinsdale and Lake Forest oases Wednesday.

Although the gas stations will keep the ExxonMobil brand, they will be operated by 7-Eleven Inc.

In February, the company was picked by the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority board to replace ExxonMobil as the operator of its fuel stops, car washes and convenience shops.

ExxonMobil was in the middle of a 25-year lease with the tollway to operate its gas stops and On The Run shops, but in 2009 it asked to be released from the deal. The agency rejected transferring the lease to a Lincolnshire-based company in 2010, saying it didn’t have enough financial backing.

Official openings at the oases are expected in April.