The Illinois tollway board of directors voted 8-0 on August 19, 2026, to approve a massive rate increase that will raise I-PASS passenger vehicle tolls by 57% beginning January 1, 2027. Truckers will face a 30% jump, with additional inflation-linked increases every two years tied to the Consumer Price Index.
The increase is part of the tollway’s 15-year, $26.5 billion Driving Connections capital program. Officials say the plan will reduce congestion, improve mobility, and create jobs. Major projects include $3.1 billion for interchange improvements at I-88 and I-355 and reconfiguring the Tri-State interchange with Irving Park Road in Schiller Park, which currently offers access only to and from the north. A full interchange at that location will cost an estimated $132 million.
Executive Director Cassaundra Rouse said the investments are necessary to maintain and improve the system. “Drivers rely on the tollway system every day, and their expectations are clear — they want a system that is safe, a system that is reliable and prepared for the future,” Rouse said.
Numerous drivers have objected to the higher rates, saying they will force them to pay hundreds more per year at a time when other costs like groceries are already straining household budgets. Former tollway director and Waukegan mayor Bill Morris called the increase excessive, noting that the tollway’s income has increased at or above the rate of inflation for several consecutive years.
Trucking executives were particularly critical, noting that unlike passenger vehicle owners, they have already been paying cost-of-living increases since 2018. Mike Moran, president of Elk Grove Village-based Moran Transportation Corp., warned the increases will be crippling. “The cost of goods is going to increase in a market that already has high inflation, and safety is going to decline as trucks avoid the tollway,” Moran said.
The rate increase means tolls currently at 75 cents for cars will jump by 45 cents to $1.20 at many toll plazas in 2027. A commuter driving on I-90 from Barrington to downtown and back 50 weeks per year will see costs rise from $600 to $950 annually. The biennial CPI increases are capped at 8% every two years, with a maximum CPI of 4% per year.
The hike follows a landmark transit reform and funding bill passed by the Illinois General Assembly last year and signed by Governor JB Pritzker. The bill, which took effect June 1, shifts some funds from road projects to public transit and includes a provision allowing the tollway to raise rates to offset the diversion.
