Drivers on Illinois highways can expect their commutes to get more expensive starting next year.
The Illinois Tollway’s Board of Directors passed the “Driving Connections” capital program on Aug. 19. With its adoption comes funding for 15 years’ worth of $26.5 billion in investments in upgrades and repairs to the tollway system, made possible in part by an increase in toll rates.
How much will rates go up?
Passenger toll rates will increase by about 45 cents per toll for I-PASS users starting Jan. 1, 2027. Rates for drivers without an I-PASS are around 90 cents.
Starting in 2029, these rates will be adjusted every two years based on inflation.
Commercial toll rates will increase by approximately 30%. These tolls are currently subject to Consumer Price Index increases each year; under the new plan, those adjustments will be reduced to once every two years.
Thousands of public comments received
The decision comes after 13 public hearings were hosted across the 12 counties served by the tollway, including DuPage and Will counties, as required by the Illinois Toll Highway Act.
During the public comment period, the tollway said it notified more than 4 million I-PASS account holders, among other outreach efforts. In total, more than 18,000 public comments were received between June 18, when the “Driving Connections” plan was first presented, and Aug. 3.
Some concerns cited by drivers included rising costs of housing, fuel, taxes and other everyday expenses. The tollway also said concerns were raised around future toll increases occurring without proper public review.
The tollway said it is a user-funded system which does not get any state, federal or motor fuel tax revenues, adding that the increase was needed to support a range of infrastructure projects. It noted that this was the first toll rate increase in more than 15 years.
Upcoming corridor projects
The capital plan includes funding for projects like smart infrastructure, interchange improvements, congestion reduction and corridor modernization.
On I-88 in Naperville, these include:
- Road and Bridge Rehabilitation: Aurora Toll Plaza to Washington St.
- Road and Bridge Rehabilitation: Washington St. to Eisenhower Expressway
- Road widening: Aurora Toll Plaza to IL 59
Estimating costs
A full list of planned improvements by highway corridor can be found on the Illinois Tollway website, along with a trip calculator to estimate the cost of travel once the toll increases are implemented.
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