Tollways Could Be State Cash Cow

From The Center Square comes this quantification of what Illinois tollways are worth:

Report suggests Illinois has options for revenue other than tax hikes

(The Center Square) – Illinois was in dire financial straits before the pandemic-induced shutdowns ground the economy to a halt, but a new study said the state may have an option that would bring in $19 billion to pay off debt or invest in its crumbling infrastructure without doing so on taxpayers’ backs. 

[It bothers me that the study’s author does not consider those using tollways taxpayers. In fact, tollway users pay twice. Once at the toll booth and again when they pay Motor Fuel Tax on the fuel used to drive on the tollways.]

To drum up media attention, 2002 Libertarian Candidate for Governor Cal Skinner brought a Marengo piglet to a meeting about raising toll prices on the Illinois Tollway.

The nonpartisan Reason Foundation found Illinois could net $19.4 billion by leasing the rights to nine state-owned toll roads. 

“These are the cream of the crop of the country’s toll roads,” said Robert Poole, author of the study and director of transportation at Reason Foundation.

Toll free by seventy-three. NOT. Governor Bill Stratton on the left.

“Chicago paid off nearly $1 billion in debt with its Skyway lease proceeds, while Indiana fully funded a 10-year transportation improvement program.

“Today, most toll road leases limit annual toll rate increases to the rate of inflation, so drivers shouldn’t fear that.

“The lease agreement would ensure meaningful state oversight of the toll rates and key performance indicators for the Illinois Tollway, while providing greater accountability and transparency for the public and toll-payers.”

Indiana leased a host of infrastructure projects with a $3.8 billion lease for tollways in 2004, which later grew when the operating company went bankrupt and had to auction off the agreement.

Over ten years, Poole said the deal was considered a significant boon for the state’s infrastructure.

Traffic jam before the Toll Tax hike.

Even though Illinois stands to make more than any other state Reason examined, Poole estimated the deal would pay down about 14 percent of Illinois’ $136 billion in total pension liabilities. 

The lease agreement, referred to as a public-private partnership, would allow a private company to take responsibility for the toll road, collect profits and absorb losses.

Political use of the Toll Authority.

Poole said the agreement could contain some stipulation about hiking rates and deals on tollway road conditions. The Illinois Tollway Authority had a $1.6 billion budget in 2019. 

The most often used example of a deal like this going wrong is Chicago’s parking meter lease.

In 2008, the Chicago City Council agreed to a long-term lease of the city’s parking meters in exchange for $1.2 billion.

In the following years, the private company earned back what it paid the city within a decade of operation and still have more than six decades of the contractual agreement to go on the 75-year lease.

Poole said parking meters aren’t an asset that should be leased in the same manner as a toll road. 

The city also leased the Chicago Skyway and used the proceeds to pay down debt and improve their bond standing.

= = = = =

I would go one step farther.

Why should just mainly Chicago-area drivers provide this financing?

Why not sell or lease the other Interstates?


Comments

Tollways Could Be State Cash Cow — 8 Comments

  1. Love the picture of gentleman Cal holding an infant J.B.

    Hope he didn’t crap on you like he has done to Illinois, Cal

  2. How about selling off all the Democrat law makers in Illinois and pay down debt?

    Oh wait, they aren’t worth anything

  3. When you fill up with fuel and pay MFT, those tax $$$$s do not go to tollway maintenance or repair.

    By paying a toll the MFT can go to other state county, and local roads.

    Fact is there isn’t enough funding for those other roads, in case you haven’t hit a pothole lately as a reminder.

    Tollway’s are the best roads in IL, robbing that funding is like robbing SS funding.

  4. Wow Toll way could be a cash cow…

    Time to wake the F@#Q up…..

    It always had been

    the democrats steal so much money…

    How do you think they finance all their campaigns…..

    The only reason they put it the IPass system was to see how much money was being stolen…

    those duffel bags of quarters are real heavy……….

    George Ryan wanted to incorporate the tollway into IDOT if that happened

    The Democrats would lose their cash cow…

    this is why he went to prison….

    as long as we have Democrats in power in Illinois we will always have the “TollWay”

  5. This pot belly pig dipping has been done over and over stealing from paying off stealing and emptying the pot, Rauner even tried to stop this stealing …

    just ask the madakahn regime how many times they have had their fingers in this pig pot…

    I call BS on all of it, just another robbing peter to pay paul…

    these pots were not to be touched and yet they continue to get porked on….

    makes me sick..

    and they think we are stupid and don’t remember how often we know they been robbed …

    what a joke..

    hey get dumber by the day..

  6. And casinos were supposed to fund the schools.

    Most of the money raised in all the methods of taxing goes into a big sucking sewer of “benefits” to the criminal class (think of the cost of police, courts, prisons), political cronies, the welfare “gimmiedats,” and government “unionistas.”

  7. What’s up?

    I found this article very interesting…please read!

    Do you remember the blockbuster hit film The Matrix that was released in 1999? You may not know this, but it has deep spiritual implications concerning the times we are living in and Bible prophecy.

    It tells a story of how these “agents” are trying to turn us into machines. We are closer then ever before for this to become a reality when they cause us to receive an implantable microchip in our body during a time when physical money will be no more.

    You may have seen on NBC news concerning the implantable RFID microchip that some people are getting put in their hand to make purchases, but did you know this microchip matches perfectly with prophecy in the Bible?

    “He (the false prophet who deceives many by his miracles) causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name…

    You also may have heard of the legendary number “666” that people have been speculating for possibly thousands of years on what it actually means. This article shares something I haven’t seen before, and I don’t think there could be any better explanation for what it means to calculate 666. This is no hoax. Very fascinating stuff!

    …Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666″ (Revelation 13:16-18 NKJV).

    To see all the details showing why the Bible foretold of all these things, check out this article!

    Article: http://1.voicetruth.org

    GOD is sending out His end time warning:

    “Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name” (Revelation 14:9-11).

    Seek Jesus while He may be found…God bless!

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