Hundreds of residents turned out Wednesday for public hearings on the proposed tollway increase, calling the size of the hike outrageous and claiming tollway officials have remained unaccountable for what they have collected in the past.
“This plan stinks of pork, it stinks of George Ryan, and the plan should be delayed until a new governor appoints a new tollway board,” said Lidia Downs of East Dundee.
Naperville resident Eugene Tenner said the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority had been “arrogantly” spending money.
“And during these uncertain economic times, you have the chutzpah to ask us to increase tolls [when] you have shown no financial responsibility to anyone other than yourselves,” Tenner said.
The proposed toll hike–from 40 to 75 cents for the average commuter–would be the biggest toll increase in the tollway’s 44 years.
Woodstock resident Eric Richardson, a meteorologist for United Airlines, noted that the toll increases would mean paying an extra $400 a year for him.
“That’s no small change. It’s really going to hurt,” Richardson said.
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Amorous Lesko, an accountant from Chicago’s North Side, said “regular people who drive each day” would have trouble absorbing the cost.
“We have groceries to buy, kids to take care of. I don’t see this being an easy tax on any of us,” Lesko said.
While opinions were overwhelmingly opposed to the increase, there was a smattering of support, principally from engineers and union representatives.
Tollway officials say the increase would raise only a little more than half the money needed to pay for a proposed $5.5 billion program that would rebuild 234 miles of roadway and widen about a third of the system from six to eight lanes.
Officials said another increase would be necessary in 2010 to complete the program, which also calls for adding I-PASS lanes and reconstructing bridges.
Terry Pastika, an attorney for the Tollway Accountability Campaign, called for the authority to show how the money would be spent. Although the group said it doesn’t specifically oppose an increase, it wants the toll authority to guarantee that any revenues from a toll hike would be used solely to fix the existing system, not to expand it.
“We want to emphasize that the toll authority is ripe for accountability. Their capital plan is vague at best,” Pastika said.
Tollway officials say that without a toll increase, they will not have the money to rebuild or adequately maintain the aging system by 2004, and that the tollway’s bondholders, concerned that their investment is not being protected, could file a suit that might result in a court-ordered toll increase.
But board members did not reckon on the reaction in Springfield. The toll authority’s bid to raise tolls in an election year raised concerns in the General Assembly, where the focus has been on resolving a more than $1 billion deficit.
On Wednesday, the Illinois Senate made its position about the increase apparent, approving a measure that would postpone any toll increases until June 2003.
“The people want answers to reasonable questions,” said state Sen. Kathy Parker (R-Northbrook), who chairs the Senate Transportation Committee. “And they want to make sure the tollway’s house is in order before they come up with a plan for increasing tolls.”
The measure also would require a management audit of the toll authority by Illinois’ auditor general by June 2003 and a 20-year strategic plan from the authority by Dec. 31.