Toll hike could pave future

Chicago Sun Times: No one wants to pay more to drive the Illinois Tollway.

To be exact, no one wants to pay nearly double what they pay now to drive from Naperville to Chicago or from Alsip to Downers Grove.

But if you want a quicker ride, if you want a road system that advances our local economy rather than chokes it and if you want a tollway system that can help reduce pollution, higher tolls are the price you likely have to pay.

The Illinois State Toll Highway Authority recently proposed a stiff toll increase to finance a $12 billion, 15-year capital plan. This includes rebuilding and widening the Jane Addams Tollway (Interstate 90 between Rosemont and Rockford); a new Elgin O’Hare west bypass; a new interchange to connect Interstate 294 and Interstate 57, and an overhaul of the existing 286 miles of tollways in northern Illinois.

We tentatively endorse the toll increase, the first one in 28 years for 75 percent of all toll road users.

The Illinois Tollway has carefully analyzed its existing system and developed projects that keep the current roads in good repair but also position the region for growth. The widening of I-90, for example, will include room for a bus rapid transit lane one day. The Elgin O’Hare west bypass should prove to be an engine for economic development. All these changes, we hope, will lessen the intense traffic jams that make Chicago the nation’s most congested city.