So the old fable goes that there are 4 seasons in the Chicago area; almost winter, winter, still winter and construction season. Judging from the recent weather and the ongoing rhetoric from Springfield, it looks as if that is not about to change anytime soon.

Having survived recent construction on virtually all of the major highways (53, 90, 290, and 355) surrounding the Schaumburg area over the last 2+ years, I don not look forward to the prospect of more construction heading our way. Unfortunately, if Blagojevich and the Illinois Tollway Authority get their way, the “green lanes” project will serve as another opportunity to increase toll rates, and wastefully spend a lot of money.

On October 15, 2008, the Illinois Tollway was directed by Governor Rod Blagojevich to launch the Congestion-Relief Program Phase Two – ”Tomorrow’s Transportation Today”.

Many media outlets are already toting the new plan as a “green” solution to cut congestion and combat emissions. They are basically taking the Tollway Authority’s press releases and printing them almost verbatim.  

‘Green lanes’ would cut traffic, pollution’ (Pioneer Press)

The Green Lane Plan also will charge motorists driving hybrid and electric fuel cell vehicles less at tolls. Green lanes are planned for high-occupancy tollways surrounding Chicago.

Green lanes are proposed for the Tri-State Tollway (I-294) at O’Hare International Airport, Jane Addams Memorial Toll (I-90), Reagan Memorial Highway (I-88) and Veteran’s Memorial Highway (I-355). Green lane construction could begin in 2010, but a completion date was not provided.

However, I think that a healthy dose of skepticism is due from the public. First, looking at the pathetically vapid details of the project on the Illinois Tollway site, it does not appear that the Tollway authority is committing to increasing the number of lanes and setting aside those new lanes for so-called “green” or carpool lanes. Instead, it looks as if the Illinois Tollway Authority is only reorganizing the existing lanes at a very high cost and many years of construction and traffic for a very limited, if any, improvement to congestion. Also, brought to my attention is that no feasibility study has been done for the project. Huh?

It looks as if Blagojevich and the Illinois Tollway Authority will be using the “green lanes” project as an opportunity to increase toll rates, create more traffic, and wastefully spend a lot of money on a grand scale. I cannot help but wonder if the Illinois Tollway and the overall highway system isn’t just a very big job giveaway program for the political elite.

From 2001-2003, the I-355 was repaired and widened in the area between Addison and Naperville. In 2005, barely a year after the original construction was complete, the highway was getting ripped up again for construction on the open road tolling project. Roads that didn’t need to be replaced were torn up to make way for Gov. Blagojevich’s pet project. The project got wrapped up in 2007 on I-355 and elsewhere this year. Now less than one year after the open road tolling project was completed and the I-355 extension was completed there are already new plans in place to tear up the roads once again.

I am going to go way out on a limb and make a series of predictions for Blagojevich’s latest pet project, “green lanes”.

• The “green lanes” project will be tremendously over the $1.8 billion dollar budget.
• The project will unnecessarily tear up perfectly good roads and tie up the roads with congestion for many, many years.
• The project will take much longer than promised.
• The results in relieving congestion will never be realized, the money will have largely been wasted.
• Toll rates will go up. “Green cars” and carpoolers will pay the existing I-Pass rate, and the rates for everyone else will go up. Exactly like what happened during phase 1 of this project (open-road tolling) when the rates on non I-Pass riders doubled.
• The state will never, ever, make good on the promise from the 1953 state law that created the Tollway Authority which stated “When all bonds … have been paid . . . toll highways shall become a part of the system of the State highways of the State of Illinois, and be maintained and operated free of tolls.” 

COMMENT: This has all the hallmarks of an opportunistic, political plan cobbled together in great haste. The green lanes will need to be drastically modified to be workable, or scrapped. 

Toll increases scheduled to take effect seven years hence – through election cycles in 2010, 2012, and 2014 – are hardly credible. Neither this Governor nor this Tollway Board are likely to be around, so they will be easily disowned.

ADDITION: A Tollway official commenting on this says on the green lanes: “Without Board direction to study and authorization for funding, Tollway was not able to undertake the full-fledged study.”

However that is being initiated immediately.

The Tollroads News confirmed my worst fears that they are just reconstructing the existing lane and not building any new ones to add to road capacity.

Be Sociable, Share!

• 

No related posts.